Bring Me To Life
by BehindGrayEyes
Summary: After the events of the Harvest, Imogen left the French Quarter coven and vowed to do anything to protect the last of her family. With the arrival of the Original Family, the vampires are thrown into complete upheaval and Imogen is caught right in the middle. With the supernatural community of New Orleans prepping for war, which side will she fall down on?
1. House of the Rising Son

**Bring Me To Life:**

**House of the Rising Son:**

The loud music pumped through the bar as the daywalking vampires drank alcohol without a care in the world because they were in the supernatural hotbed of New Orleans. The large Louisianan city was a place where no vampire feared the wrath of witches or werewolves and could relax into their nature.

A man with dark skin, brown eyes, and a shaven head that appeared to be in his late 20's although he was really 201 years old sat alone at the bar drinking whiskey straight from the bottle. The other vampires in the bar kept a wide, respectful distance but were discreetly looking at him from the corners of their eyes. The man knew that the other vampires were keeping an eye on him and a small smirk appeared on his lips as he sipped his whiskey.

Footsteps near the front door of the bar alerted him to a new presence and he lifted his dark gaze to the door in anticipation of the new arrival. His smirk widened when he saw the familiar silhouette of a slim body and unembellished tan skin of a young woman in her early 20's dressed in a floral sundress appear in the doorway to the bar. He pulled out his iPhone from his pocket and checked the date on the calendar before letting out an amused chuckle.

Bluish-green eyes framed with darkened eye lashes searched the crowded bar despite it being the middle of the afternoon looking for the man she came to see. Her full lips were pursed together as she placed a hand on her hip and used the other to tuck a piece of dark hair that had fallen out of her braid behind her ear.

The man at the bar watched in amusement as one of the other male vampires in the bar approached the young woman and she tilted her head to the side when he stopped in front of her.

"Hey, Diego." The young woman greeted the dark skinned vampire with a fond smile as she lifted her arms out to the side without him having to ask her to and he smirked at her in greeting before he gently patted down her thinly covered sides in case she was carrying any weapons that could hurt a vampire.

"'Sup, Imogen." Diego greeted the woman in return as he let his hands drop from her sides and nodded at her to pass by him as she smiled at him warmly. The man at the bar shook his head in amusement as he sipped the whiskey once again and then placed the bottle down as the young woman approached him with a smile on her face.

"Marcel." She greeted the man as she slipped on the bar stool next to him and he turned his body to face her full on with a smirk on his lips. "Your men do know I don't need a weapon to kill you, right?"

"What can I do for you today, Miss Imogen?" Marcel asked the young woman knowingly with a cocky grin as he ignored her pervious statement and she rolled her bluish eyes at him with a smirk on her lips as she leaned forward on her seat slightly.

"The same thing you have been doing for me every month for the last eight months." Imogen responded as she reached into the large purse and pulled out a white envelope with the word _Pixie _scrawled on it. She placed the envelope gently on the bar counter as though it was a precious gem and Marcel glanced down at the envelope with a fond smile as Imogen tapped a manicured fingernail on the paper.

"I don't know…" he drawled with a sigh even though they both knew that he would do as she was asking without much of a fight and Imogen placed her hand flat on the envelope as she turned her body to face him.

"I'll owe you."

"How many is that you owe me already?" he asked her with a smirk as he lifted the whiskey bottle to his lips and she quirked an eyebrow at him because she knew he remembered each favour she owed him. "Hmm. Eight. One for each month."

"Seven. Unless, you're counting this one." Imogen corrected him instantly as she crept the hand that held the envelope closer to him on the bar top and he reached out to place his hand on the envelope next to hers. Marcel leaned towards the young woman next to him so that his dark brown eyes caught her bluish one and she nibbled nervously on her lower lip as she plead with her eyes for him to do her this favour.

"I always say 'yes' to this." He reminded her softly as he pulled the envelope out from under her hand gently and Imogen smiled at him sadly as her hand fell on to the cold woodened bar top.

"All it takes is one 'no', Marcel, and then it's all over for me." Imogen retorted softly as she slipped off of her bar stool gracefully without breaking eye contact with the vampire and her heels clicked on the floor as she landed. Marcel looked at the sincerity in her bluish eyes for a moment longer before he turned his head back to the bar and grabbed the bottle of whiskey again.

"What are the other witches up to?" he asked her casually as he sipped from the bottle and Imogen shrugged her shoulder delicately as she tucked a dark strand of dark behind her ear.

"You know that I was kicked out of the coven years ago. Not even Sophie will talk to me anymore. Well, it's not like I want to speak to them anyway. Not after what they did." She answered darkly as she looked around the bar she that she wouldn't have to meet his inquisitive gaze and he nodded absently as she spoke because it was the same thing she said every month.

"Are you staying for the party tonight?" Marcel asked her with a charming smile as he held the bottle out for her to take and she chuckled lightly as she took the whiskey from him with a small smile.

"If you're lucky…"

"Friends with a witch, Marcel? How the mighty have fallen." A male British accented voice said from behind the pair and they both turned in surprise to see an attractive 5'11 man with curly light brown hair and light blue eyes smirking at them. Imogen gave the man a once over with a quirked eyebrow at the interruption before turning back to Marcel with a slight smile.

"This witch is leaving. Thank you, call if you want to collect." She said to him warmly as she pulled her handbag up higher on her shoulder and Marcel nodded his head in acknowledgment as he sipped the whiskey in his hand. The British man silently watched them with a smirk on his handsome face and sat down on Imogen's vacant seat as she walked towards the front door of the bar.

"Lovely girl." He said sarcastically as he watched her stop near the door to talk to one of the daywalkers and Marcel followed his gaze to see Imogen talking animatedly with Diego near the door.

"She's one of the only witch's in the quarter I trust even a teeny tiny bit." Marcel replied as he turned his head away from the young witch to give his mentor a charming smile and Klaus quirked an eyebrow at him with a smirk.

"Why would you trust a witch?" Klaus asked his protégé curiously as he took the bottle of whiskey from his hand and gulped a few mouthfuls of the burning liquid.

"Ah, because Imogen there has more reason's then me to hate the witches of the Quarter. Now I'm not saying I trust her completely but with little things like coming into my bar to talk to me, she's fine."

"Why would a witch hate her own kind? Doesn't the New Orleans coven practice ancestral magic and are all raised to honour the spirits?" The Original asked as he looked over his shoulder at the young witch who was laughing with some of the daywalkers familiarly and Marcel smirked at him knowingly as he leaned forward a little on his stool.

"Let's just say that Imogen, you and I all have something in common." The dark skinned vampire revealed covertly before sitting back in his seat and glancing over at the beautiful dark haired witch near the door.

"She's a bastard." Klaus stated as he looked over at Marcel with a sad smile on his lips and the other man shrugged one shoulder delicately as he sipped from the whiskey bottle.

"Nah, but she got the same treatment from her biological father." Marcel said softly as his dark gaze looked over at the witch once more with a smile before turning his body anyway from Imogen and Klaus raised an eyebrow as he looked over at the smiling young witch near the door.

* * *

The sun was shining brightly as Imogen strolled down the footpath in the French Quarter with purpose and she quickly glanced over her shoulder in paranoia when she felt eyes on the back of her head. She shook her head at herself before she turned her head back to face the front and focused her attention on the small bar at the end of the street.

People passed her on the street without batting an eyelash and she was grateful that New Orleans was such a large city so that not everyone knew who she was. After growing up surround by a coven of witches that practiced ancestral magic and studied together generation after generation it was refreshing to go by unnoticed. Her family was well-known as one of the strongest families in the witching community before the incident but now in the last eight months, Imogen had made a name for herself in the negative sense.

The young witch slowed down as she neared the familiar door to the bar where she was meeting her friend and opened the door with a small when she saw the blonde sitting in the side of the bar with textbooks spread out on the table in front of her.

Camille O'Connell was a young woman in her early twenties, standing at approximately 5'6" who had an attractive face possessing green-blue eyes, dark lashes and shoulder length blonde hair. Imogen had met the young bartender on the Tulane College campus where they were both studying psychology and had instantly hit it off when they sat next to each other in one of their classes.

The small bar played country music in the background as a handful of people milled around thankful for a place to get out of the hot Louisiana sun and Imogen smiled to herself gratefully for the air-conditioning in the bar. She shrugged her purse off of her shoulder as she approached the blonde who had yet to look up from her textbook and she sunk down on the seat across from her with a smirk on her lips.

"Hey, Cami." Imogen greeted her friend softly so she didn't startle the other woman as she gently touched her arm and Cami jumped slightly in surprise was her head jerked up from her book with her green eyes wide.

"Oh, crap. Sorry, Imogen. Have you been there long?" Cami asked her friend apologetically as she dropped her highlighter on the book and Imogen shook her head with an amused smile as she reached over to pick up the fallen highlighter.

"I just got here. You really need to relax, Cam."

"I will." Cami agreed with a brief nod of her head as she took the highlighter back from her friend and placing the lid back on with a click before smiling teasingly. "After we graduate."

"Cami…." The brunette groaned playfully as she shook her head at her friend and Cami laughed lightly for the first time that day. She wasn't sure what it was about Imogen but something about her just made it so much easier for Cami to relax and that was exactly what she needed in her life at the moment.

"I know, I know. You've already given me the lecture before." Camille told the other girl with a dismissive wave of her hand as she placed the highlighter down on the table and Imogen sighed at her in resignation before leaning her elbow on the table with her chin resting in the hand. The blonde smiled at her warmly before glancing over the brunette's shoulder subtly and smirking slyly at whatever it was she saw. "Someone's got an admirer."

"What?" Imogen asked in confusion as her forehead furrowed and she turned her head to look over her shoulder at whatever had caught her friend attention. Sitting at the booth near the window at the front of the bar was a familiar man with dark skin, a shaved hair and dark eyes that were trained on the table Imogen and Cami were sitting at. Imogen fought a blush as her bluish eyes met his dark brown ones before she turned back to her friend and smiling shyly as she bit down on her lower lip.

Marcel watched intently as Imogen began talking softly to the young blonde woman across from her as he waited patiently for Klaus to arrive at the bar and he sipped his drink of scotch as he made the decision to respect their privacy enough not to eavesdrop with his vampire hearing. He hadn't planned on seeing Imogen here today but he wasn't going to complain at the opportunity it presented for him because he would take any chance to see the beautiful young witch.

"He is incredibly hot." Her heard Imogen's blonde friend say to her in giddy voice from across the room and he strained his vampire hearing in interest to see what the brunette would say in reply since she knew he could hear her.

"Well, that's obvious. Problem is he knows it." Imogen whispered back to the blonde in reply as she cast a quick glance at him from the corner of her eye and he smirked at her from his spot across the room to let her know that he had heard her. Marcel shook his head in amusement as she chuckled lightly before turning back to her friend and he felt a rush of something he didn't want to feel when he saw her smile light up her face.

"Well, this is a far cry from last night's party." He heard a familiar British voice say from in front of him and he jerked his head around to see Klaus sitting in the seat across the booth from him. Marcel cast a fleeting look over at Imogen before looking at his mentor from a serious look on his face because he wanted to ask the Original about the dead tourists.

Klaus followed his protégés dark gaze over to the table on the other side of the room and smirked when her saw a familiar brunette witch sitting with a young blonde writing in a textbook. Imogen was waving her hands slightly as spoke to the blonde across from her and Klaus couldn't stop the small smile that appeared on his lips at the sight of her now that he knew a little of her background. He turned back around to face Marcel with a smirk on his lips as he leaned forward with his elbows on the table. "Ah, in pursuit of the witch from the other day, I see."

"She's a work in progress." Marcel replied vaguely to his old friend with a charming smile before sipping some more of his scotch and leaning back in the booth.

"And yet here you are, pining over her when you should be eating her for lunch. Oh, she must be special." Klaus quipped jokingly with a smile as he watched Marcel's gaze flicker over to the witch once more and the hybrid thought about how much his little sister was going to hate knowing about Marcel's knew interest.

"Business first. The coroner called. He's got my number in case any dead tourists show up." Marcel explained seriously as he got down to the reason he had asked Klaus down to the bar in the first place and Klaus quirked an eyebrow in interest as he listened.

"Let me guess – dead tourists with a stamp on the hand and vampire blood in their veins?"

"It happens. Someone takes a drunken tumble off a balcony, or into the Mississippi... And today I got two of them to deal with." The younger vampire said irritably as he gulped the rest of his scotch and Klaus cocked his head to the side as he watched his friend tense with stress over the situation.

"Let's go." Both the vampire's heard Imogen say softly to her friend as the blonde started closing her textbook that were open on the table and Klaus quickly rose from his seat at the booth to block the door just as the two girls approached it.

Cami and Imogen jerked to a stop in surprise as the brown haired man the young witch had seen yesterday with Marcel stepped in front of the door so that they couldn't exit. Imogen quirked an eyebrow at the man in annoyance as she cast a glance over to where Marcel was sitting in his booth and watching them in surprise as well.

"Excuse me, love. What's that you're studying?" The man asked Cami curiously in his attractive British accent as he smiled at her charmingly and the blonde glanced at her friend in surprise since she thought he would want to talk to Imogen because he was friends with the hot guy who had been eying her since she got there. The brunette shrugged her shoulders delicately at her friend to indicate she had no idea where this was going and Cami turned her green eyes back to the handsome man in front of her.

"Abnormal psychology." Cami answered calmly as she placed her textbook into her shoulder bag and then glanced over at the dark skinned man that had been checking out her friend.

"Abnormal psychology, well. Perhaps you could help me diagnose my friend over here. He's been a little bit depressed, can't keep his mind off a girl. He tells me she's a queen, fit for a king." The British guy said cheerfully as he subtly nodded his head in Imogen's direction to indicate who he was really talking about and Cami smirked slightly as she glanced at her friend from the corner of her eye only to see the brunette looking over at the dark skinned man. "I think he should cut his losses and move on. What's your professional opinion?"

"Be a nice guy, and maybe the opportunity will present itself someday." Cami said to the dark skinned man after glancing at Imogen for confirmation that she could answer and Marcel grinned charmingly at the young witch.

"How about tonight, nine o'clock? I'll meet you right here?" Marcel asked Imogen with a captivating smile that made her heart flutter and she internally swore to herself because she knew that he could hear it with his vampire hearing.

"I'll take it under consideration." Imogen replied lightly as she tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear and sent him a bright smile before sauntering out the front door of the bar. Cami laughed lightly at her friends teasing attitude before following after her and leaving the two men looking after them in awe.

"Mm, harsh." Marcel muttered to himself as he leaned back on the booth seat and he looked away from the front door of the bar that Imogen had just left through.

"I daresay I've lost my touch. Or you've lost yours." Klaus joked teasingly as he sat back down across from his protégé and Marcel grinned at him before taking a sip of his scotch.

* * *

Later that night, Imogen was walking through the French Quarter down a vacant street by the light of the stars and the streets lights that were placed evenly down the road. She had left Cami when the blonde needed to get to work at her job as a bartender at Rousseau's and when she had asked Imogen to come for a drink, the young witch had declined because she didn't want to see Sophie Deveraux.

Her heels clicked on the concrete pathway as she walked down the familiar street towards her apartment building and smiled slightly as she remembered Marcel's invite from earlier in the day. Imogen brushed a strand of her dark hair behind her ear while simultaneously looking over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't being followed because she could feeling someone's eyes trained on her as she walked. The last eight months had made her paranoia but she felt that she had a good reason for her sudden suspicion and followed her instincts on the matter without question.

Marcel watched the young witch from his perch on the balcony above the street with a warm smile on his lips as the brunette walked and occasionally glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was following her. The vampire looked off in to the distance when he heard a the familiar sound of a party taking place back at the compound and briefly though about leaving to go and party with some of his followers before he looked back down at the beautiful brunette beneath him. He smiled to himself once more before he gracefully launched himself off of the balcony he was standing on and landed elegantly on the ground behind the young witch.

Imogen felt someone's presence behind her on the footpath but didn't change her pace or flinch even though she felt the need to because she didn't want to alert the person that she knew they were there. She subtly moved her handbag so that her body was blocking it before reaching inside and letting her hand wrapped loosely around the set of wooden chopsticks she kept in there exactly for this reason. She knew that most women would carry pepper spray with them to warn off attackers but Imogen had grown up in a city ran by vampire's so she was always prepared for the worse. The young witch knew the consequences of using her magic so she kept a lock on the sudden urge so felt to let the buzzing energy she felt rising inside of her fly freely and took a deep breath to steady her emotions so that they wouldn't overwhelm her. A hand suddenly grabbed a hold of Imogen's shoulder gently and she quickly spun around on her heel to take her attack by surprise before using all of her strength to stab the wooden chopsticks into the assailant's stomach. She knew that the chopsticks wouldn't kill a vampire but it would surprise them enough that she could make a run for it or make a decision whether to kill them if she had to.

"Ah!" Marcel grunted in pain as the young witch jabbed him in the stomach with something sharp and he was surprised by the attack long enough for her to slip out of his hold. He could sense her backing up from him so he quickly pulled the weapon out of his abdomen and stood up with a grimace as the wound healed now that nothing was inside it.

"Marcel?" Imogen asked in shock as she recognised the familiar silhouette of the dark skinned vampire in front of her and she quickly moved forward with an apologetic frown on her face. The brunette grabbed gently on to his bicep to help him as he stood up straight and flashed a reassuring smile at her as he held up the bloodied chopstick.

"A chopstick? Really?"

"What? It worked." She defended herself with a delicate shrug of her shoulder as a smile played at the edges of her lips and Marcel chuckled lightly as he threw the bloodied chopstick to the side of the footpath. As he turned his head to look at her, he noticed how close their bodies were near that he was standing up straight and he could feel the heat coming off of her body from a few inches away. Imogen sucked in a breath when she noticed the way his brown eyes darkened with lust as he looked at her and his eyes swept over her beautiful face silently as she bit on her lower lip nervously.

"Yeah, it worked. It worked real well." Marcel confirmed in a whisper as he glanced down at her lips quickly before looking up into her bluish eyes and noticing her nibbling on her lip almost seductively, although he doubted she knew what it was doing to him.

"So, um, why is it that you're stalking me?" she asked him teasingly as she took a step back from him because she felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her because she had just realised that she was still holding onto his muscular upper arm and he instantly missed the warmth from her skin on his when she removed her hand.

"I just want to see if you were going to join me at the bar for a drink?" he explained to her even though it sounded more like a question even to his own ears and Imogen flashed a small smile as she looked down at the ground shyly.

"I was thinking about it." She admitted honestly as she looked back up at him coyly and Marcel grinned at her as he stepped forward so that he was only an inch or two away from her. She knew that her heart was racing because of his nearness but there wasn't anything she could do to stop the fact that she was attracted to the dark skinned vampire in front of her.

"Then stop thinking." He suggested softly as he reached out to grasp one of his hands around her wrist gently and she chuckled lightly at him as she nodded in agreement. Marcel grinned enthusiastically at her as he tightened his hold on her arm before moving closer to her and wrapped his arm securely around her waist.

Imogen gasped slightly in surprise when he appeared next to her but quickly got over it when she realised that he was going to use his vampire speed to run them to the bar. She gripped onto the strong arm around her waist as her breath caught in her throat when she felt his breath on the side of her neck and she shivered slightly when his skin touched hers. Marcel tightened his grip on her waist before running at vampire speed towards the bar and Imogen squeezed her eyes shut so she wouldn't get dizzy when the scenery changed rapidly. She felt a rush of coldness when they stopped moving and she slowly opened her eyes to see that she was standing in the same bar that Marcel had asked her out in earlier that day.

Marcel loosened his grip on the young witch's waist but didn't let go of her completely as he stepped to the side slightly so that he could see her beautiful face and grinned when she slowly opened her bluish eyes in wonder.

"Whoa." Imogen said in admonishment as she looked around the empty bar and Marcel chuckled softly as he released her waist before moving over to the bar. Imogen's gaze followed his movements shyly before she walked over to the booth near the window at the front of the bar and sat down gracefully as she leaned her elbows on the table.

"I sent everyone home for the night. I am your humble host." Marcel announced as he walked over to the table with a bottle of red wine in one hand and two glasses in the other before sitting down across from the witch.

"Okay, extra points for flair."

"And the night's just started." He told her as he opened the corked wine bottle with a wink and pulled two glasses before passing one to her as she chuckled lightly at him. "So, Imogen, tell me something about you that I don't know yet."

"Hm, okay. I love watching classic film noir movies. My favourite is _The Maltese Falcon._" She informed him with a smile as she took the wine glass from him and Marcel quirked an eyebrow at her in surprise at her answer. The brunette leaned forward a little in her seat as she sipped her wine daintily and he watched rosy lips curve around the top of the glass.

"Really? That's strange for a 21st century woman." He commented in genuine surprise as he tore his gaze away from her lips and up into her bluish eyes with a smile on his face.

"I'm a witch who grew up in a supernatural hotbed. What's normal for me?" she asked him sarcastically with a pointed look as her eyes flashed with mirth and he laughed at her statement as he nodded in agreement.

"Good point."

"Now, tell me something about you. It's only fair after all." Imogen ordered playfully as she leaned back into the booth with a smirk on her lips and he grinned at her as he took a sip of his wine before leaned forward with his elbows on the table.

"Alright. Back in the 50's I studied law at Tulane." Marcel admitted to her almost sheepishly with a small smile and Imogen's bluish eyes lit up with interest as she leaned her elbows on the table again before placing her wine glass on the table.

"Ooh, a lawyer." She teased him humorously with a smile as she chuckled lightly and he glanced away in embarrassment as he laughed with her before look deeply into her endless blue eyes. An almost loving smile crossed his lips as he studied her beautiful tan face and she blushed under his intense examination as she smiled bashfully down at the table.

Suddenly, the front doors to the restaurant swung open widely with a crash as the door hit the side of the wall and Imogen glanced up in surprise to see a very attractive, tall young woman with natural straight blonde hair just passed her shoulders and pale skin that complimented her light blue eyes storming into the empty bar. Marcel's dark eyes widened slightly at the sight of her as he gracefully slid out of the booth he was sitting in and placed himself in front of Imogen protectively in case the blonde tried something.

"You lied to me. Where's my brother?" the blonde asked him sternly in a beautiful British lilt as she placed her hands on her hips and narrowed her blue eyes at the dark skinned vampire in front of her.

"Hello to you, too. Imogen, Rebekah – Rebekah, Imogen." Marcel introduced them in a bored voice as he gestured with a hand between the two females and Rebekah's gaze swept over to the attractive brunette sitting at the booth behind Marcel.

"I see you still have a thing for blue eyes." Rebekah spat at her ex-boyfriend spitefully as she turned back to face him and she noticed him tense slightly when she looked at the brunette. The blue eyed brunette sitting in the booth quirked her eyebrows at the blonde but didn't acknowledge her other than that and Marcel was a little glad that Imogen didn't say anything to make Rebekah madder than she already was.

Rebekah moved forward quickly with her vampire speed before grabbing him by the throat and slamming him into the wall across the empty bar so that the back of his head hit the wall with a bang. "Tell me where Elijah is."

"What the hell is going on?" Imogen asked guardedly as she slowly stood up from her seat at the booth and took a step closer to the vampires as she felt her magic rise slightly because of the adrenaline in her veins.

"Tell me where he is or I will kill you!" Rebekah demanded harshly as she slammed Marcel's head back into the wall and tightened her hold on his neck as she spoke.

"No, you won't." Marcel responded quietly as he stared into her icy blue eyes that he used to love and she slowly released her hold on him as she remembered their past relationship.

"Perhaps you're right." She replied to him softly as she let her hand drop from his throat and he relaxed slightly now that she wasn't touching him but his fear quickly returned when Rebekah vampire sped across the room.

Imogen stifled a shocked gasp as Rebekah wrapped her hand around her throat before pushing her back into the wall behind her and she felt her oxygen supply was cut off as she tightened her hold on her. The young witch felt her magic begin to rise as panic surfaced because of the life threatening situation and Imogen glared at the blonde heatedly as she tried to control her growing magic. She glanced over the blonde's shoulder at Marcel as she silently asked for permission to use her magic to get out of the vampires hold but he subtly shook his head at her as he glared at the blonde through narrowed dark eyes. "But I will kill her."

"Let her go. You won. I'll take you to see Elijah." Marcel said to Rebekah in a rush as he stepped forward with his hands raised in surrender and Rebekah studied him for a moment as though judging his sincerity before she released her hand from around the brunette's throat.

Imogen slumped slightly against the wall as she gasped for air and reached up to gingerly touch her throat as Marcel rushed across the room to stand next to her protectively. The dark skinned vampire carefully placed his hands on either side of the witch's face as he gazed into her bluish eyes to make sure she was okay and she smiled at him reassuringly as she recovered her breathing probably.

Rebekah watched them carefully as she crossed her arms over her chest and plastered a bored expression on her pretty face as Marcel comforted the brunette.

"Imogen, I'm sorry but I have to handle this, okay? Go home, forget all this, and I will make it up to you. I promise." Marcel assured the young witch as he gently cupped her cheeks in his hands and soothed the flawless tan skin over her cheekbones. Imogen cast a glanced over his broad shoulder at the impatiently looking blonde vampire across the room before pursed her lips together and looking back at the handsome man in front of her.

"Okay, but you owe me one now." Imogen told him teasingly as she leaned into his hands slightly with a smirk and he grinned back at her as he nodded his head in understanding but was glad that she was joking around with him like normal. She smiled back at him as she bit her lower lip a little and he looked down at her lips longingly before pressing a chaste kiss to her forehead but lingered a little longer than necessary.

"You wanna see Elijah? Fine. Follow me." Marcel said as he turned around to face Rebekah with a blank look on his handsome face and she straightened up as nodded her head at him before following him out of the bar.

* * *

Marcel slowly pulled open the wooden door to an attic and entered the large room with Rebekah silently following behind him as he looked around with a fond smile. He walked further into the attic as the wooden planks creaked under his feet and he turned his head back to see Rebekah looking around in confusion until her light blue gaze landed on the coffin to the side of the room. She smiled briefly before she tried to enter the room but was stopped by the invisible force field that was magically barring the entry way.

"Invite me in." Rebekah demanded as she narrowed her eyes at him in a glare and he crossed his arms over his broad chest as his handsome face remained impartial.

"Gotta ask the lady of the house. Davina, come on out, sweetheart." Marcel called out over his shoulder as he kept his dark gaze locked on the blonde Original in front of him and a beautiful young woman in her late teens with shoulder length dark brown hair walked out from behind one of the closest to stand next to him. He glanced at her with a small smile as he took in her bluish green eyes that were trained on the blonde behind the door. "Invite her in."

"Come in." the young girl said softly from beside the dark skinned vampire and Rebekah regarded her curiously for a second before she entered the attic slowly. She stared at the young brunette girl in confusion before she glanced away from her unblinking eye and she strode over to Elijah's coffin purposefully. The blonde opened the coffin slowly to see the desiccated greying body of her oldest brother and she frowned slightly at him before she reached into the coffin to wrap her hands around the dagger.

"I wouldn't do that." Davina warned her in a hard voice as she watched the blonde vampire try and pull the silver dagger out of the other Old One. The young witch narrowed her bluish eyes at the blonde as she ignored her warning and felt a swell of magic inside her as she focused on her blonde's hand. The blondes hand was magically propelled to push the dagger back into the desiccated vampire's heart and she smirked when the blonde stood up in shock with a scowl.

"Who the hell are you?" Rebekah demanded as she stood up from the coffin and glared at the young girl standing next to Marcel.

"Davina." The girl replied confidently as she lifted her chin in defiance before turning her head to look at Marcel and Rebekah noticed that her eyes softened when she looked at him. "She's an Old One, isn't she?"

"Yeah. Rebekah is an Original, which means she can't be killed." Marcel told the young girl with a small smile on his lips as he glanced down at her through dark brown eyes and Davina tilted her head to the side in silently thought as she studied the blonde vampire in front of her.

"She doesn't seem very nice."

"She can be... but she hasn't been very nice to me tonight." He informed the young girl as he looked back over at Rebekah with a frown and Davina narrowed her bluish eyes at the Original across the room.

"Then I'm afraid it's time for you to leave." Davina told Rebekah in a hard tone of voice as she felt her magic increase inside of her before she used the power to magically propel the blonde against the wall behind her without moving a muscle and she threw Rebekah out of the attic door before slamming it shut behind her. The young witch smirked to herself as she let her magic slowly diminish now that the threat wasn't in the room and then turned to Marcel with a bright smile on her face.

Marcel watched silently as Davina threw Rebekah around the attic like a ragdoll before slamming the door after her once she was unconscious outside the attic and Davina turned to face him with bright smile that lit up her pretty face. He smiled back at her lovingly as she giggled at her show of power and then skipping over to the easel near the side of the room.

"I'm sorry about that unpleasantness." He apologised to her sincerely as he watched her pick up a piece of charcoal from the bottle of the easel and he cocked his head to the side as she started to scribble on a blank canvas.

"She doesn't scare me. None of them do." Davina told him carelessly as she focused her attention on the canvas in front of her and he smiled affectionately at her as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I didn't think they would, honey. But, the thing is, it seems like they're here to stay."

"They don't belong here." The young witch said darkly as her bluish eyes narrowed at the mess of black strokes on the canvas and Marcel chuckled lightly at her comment as he slowly moved closer to her.

"Might be kinda tough to convince them of that... which is why I need to ask you for a favour. I'm gonna need you to figure out how we kill an Original." He said to her honestly as he stopped next to her and looked down at the black scribbles she had drawn.

Davina froze at his words as her hand still up in the air before she tilted her head to the side and looked over at the man she had come to love in the last eight months. She looked up into his dark brown eyes for any sigh of dishonesty but then smiled at him when all she could see was hope and love in their depths.

"Okay. I can try and find a way, but I want something in exchange." She told him sternly as she put the charcoal in her hand down on the easel's bench before she turned her body around to face him and Marcel quirked an eyebrow at her in surprise as he regarded her warily. Davina sighed slightly as she looked away from him sadly and her bluish gaze landed on a stack of eight white envelops on a table in the corner with the word _Pixie_ scrawled on them in a familiar handwriting. "I want to see Imogen."


	2. Tangled Up In Blue

**Bring Me To Life**

**Tangled Up In Blue:**

Sophie Deveraux sat down on the armchair across from the beautiful Rebekah and the narcissistic Niklaus with a blank expression on her pretty face as she folded her hands in her lap. She listened intently as she listened to their plan to find their missing brother and struggled to keep the disinterested look on her face as her anger grew with every word.

"Are you out of your mind? No way." Sophie declared firmly as she glared at the two Originals with a disbelieving frown and Rebekah sighed heavily as she leaned forward in her seat on the couch across from Sophie.

"It's very simple. We need you to perform a teeny, tiny locator spell to help us find our brother." Rebekah explained to her in a slightly condescending tone as she tried her hardest to keep her anger in check because they needed the witch's help to find Elijah.

"Witches who practice magic in this town get caught, and they get killed." The young witch reminded them in a hard voice as she moved her gaze in between the two siblings and narrowed her dark brown eyes at them almost warningly.

"Yes, about that. It seems you left out a crucial detail when we made our deal—Marcel's secret weapon, the way he knows when a witch is using magic." Klaus said to her pointedly as he pursed his lips at her and leaned his elbows on his knees as he stared straight at her as though daring her to dispute him.

"Girl about yay high, cute as a button, anger issues." Rebekah added mockingly as she held her hand in the air near her shoulder to demonstrate and Sophie felt her insides freeze with a mix with emotions as her eyes widened.

"Davina? Where have you seen her?" Sophie asked in a demand as she clenched her hands into fist and ignored the mild guilt she felt at the thoughts she was having but focused on the hope that Rebekah had unknowingly given her.

"I don't know. The little brat erased my memory right after she threw me out a window with her bloody mind." Rebekah hissed menacingly as she scowled at the memory of being bested by a 16 year old and shook her long blonde hair over her left shoulder.

Sophie felt the brief flash of hope diminish at the Originals words but tried not to show the disappointment on her face as she settled back in her seat.

"Let me cut to the chase. Davina has Elijah. You witches, I assume, want to get Davina away from Marcel. We don't know where she is. Ergo, we need magic." Klaus told the witch in a calm voice as he leaned back on the couch he was sitting on and placed his behind his head leisurely as Sophie glared at him.

"Davina would sense it." Sophie argued with a shake of her head as she crossed her ankles and dug nails into the palms of her hands to stop her from saying anything that would complicate the situation. Her parents, her sister and the elders in the coven had always berated her when she was younger for speaking without thinking but she and Imogen had ignored them as they followed no rules but their own. Sophie swallowed heavily at the thought of her lost best friend but didn't allow her thoughts to wander too far into the past.

"Unless, of course, another witch—say, a traitor to the cause, Katie for example—was to perform much more powerful magic at the same time. That would create a smokescreen, concealing your very small spell from Davina." Rebekah said with a small bloodthirsty smirk as she tilted her head to the side and tapped her boot impatiently as she waited for the inevitable to come out of the witch's mouth.

"Katie doesn't deserve to die."

"Sophie Deveraux." Klaus suddenly exclaimed loudly as he slammed his hand down on the coffee room in between them and Sophie jumped slightly as he stood up from the couch. "You're in no position to be so principled. You can't win a war without a few strategic losses, no matter how regrettable they may be. How many times have the vampires been one step ahead, known something they shouldn't? Your sister, executed in the public square for practicing magic, who knew she'd be caught? Did she even attempt to flee?"

"She was caught hiding in a cargo hold of a freighter before it set sail down the Mississippi." Sophie admitted softly as hot tears filled her dark brown eyes but she dug her nails into her palms so that she didn't cry in front of the Originals because she refused to show them weakness.

"And who, pray tell, of Marcel's valued inner circle manages his business at the docks?"

"Katie's boyfriend, Thierry." Sophie stated quietly as she closed her eyes against her tears and supressed the small swell of guilt in her stomach as she nodded her head slowly in acknowledgement to their point.

* * *

Rebekah sat at the bar counter at Rousseau's with a half empty glass of scotch in front of her as she smiled at the blonde bartender on the opposite side of the bar.

"And so then I moved back here to be closer to my brothers because—let's face it—family's important, right, Camille?" Rebekah asked with a slight bitterness in her British accented voice as she swirled her scotch around in the glass.

"Cami. I have to change this name tag. Drunk guys keep hitting on me in French." Cami said with a small smile on her lips as she cleaned a glass with a rag and Rebekah chuckled slightly as she nodded in acknowledgment. "You sure you haven't been in here before?"

"She's a friend of mine. Maybe you've seen her with me." A voice interrupted Rebekah as she went to answer the curious blonde and Cami glanced of her shoulder with a smile at the woman who was approaching them from behind.

"Hey, Imogen! I didn't think you'd actually come. I know you avoid this place like the plague." Camille teased her friend lightly as the brunette sat down the stool next to Rebekah with a smile at the bartender and Rebekah looked between the two in confusion as to why the witch was lying about them being friends.

"Sophie's not here, right?" Imogen asked her with a quirked eyebrow as she leaned her elbows on the bar counter and Cami chuckled softly as she shook her head in answer to her friend. "Well, as long as Sophie isn't here, I can be."

"I still don't know why two don't like each other."

"And you probably never will. You aren't a psychologist yet and I'm not paying you 200 dollars an hour to listen to me bitch. You're my friend so you have to do that for free." The young witch pointed out jokingly with a smirk and Camille rolled her blue eyes at her with a small genuine smile gracing her lips for first time that day.

"You're lucky I can tolerate your weird personality. Take your alcohol and let me work." Cami said in amusement as she poured the brunette a glass of bourbon and placed it on the counter in front of her.

"You're the one who invited me down here." Imogen reminded her playfully as she wrapped her hand around the glass and risked a quick glance at the blonde Original watching the witch and bartender interact with an almost jealous expression.

"I regret it." The blonde behind the counter said drily as she kept her pretty face serious before cracking a small smile and watching away from the duo at the bar as she threw the rag over her shoulder.

"Why did you lie to her?" Rebekah asked the brunette witch next to her curiously with a slight edge of suspicious in her accented voice and Imogen took a leisurely sip of her drink as she studied the blonde next to her. With one glance, Imogen could immediately tell that the youngest Mikaelson was lonely and that was something she could relate to at the moment.

"Maybe it wasn't a lie." The witch finally said seriously as she placed her glass down on the counter in front of her and Rebekah raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow at her vague answer in question as she sipped her own glass of scotch. "Maybe it was a prediction of the future."

"Why would you want to be friends with someone that threatened to kill you?"

"If I hated everyone who threatened to kill me, I wouldn't have any friends at all. I asked around about you after our little altercation and found out that you were looking for your brother. Elijah, right? The moral Original Vampire, always wears a suit, dead sexy? You see what I did there with the dead pun?" Imogen asked airily as she tilted her head to the side and pursed her lips slightly as she swirled her bourbon around in the glass. Rebekah couldn't help but quirk a small smile at the witch's description of her brother as she nodded her head and placed her now empty glass down on the bar counter in front of her. "Family is important. I'd do anything for mine. It would be hypocritical of me to fault someone for doing the same."

"For the record, I'm glad I didn't kill you. I like you, Imogen. Most girls have the unfortunate tendency of being whiny little twits." Rebekah told the young witch nonchalantly as she pushed a strand of blonde hair behind her ear and the brunette next to her laughed softly at the compliment as she downed the rest of her drink.

"Thank you. I like you, too. Most female vampires around here have the unfortunate tendency of being annoyingly high and mighty." Imogen replied with a roll of her blue eyes as she turned her body to face Rebekah and the blonde laughed slightly as she shook her head at the witch's point of view.

"Hey, I'm supposed to go to this posh charity thing thrown by this philanthropist tonight. He's a bit of a Gatsby, throws a mean party. Any interest?" Rebekah asked the young witch curiously as she bit the inside of her cheek and ignored the slight swell of guilt as a plan began to form in her mind that centred on the brunette.

"You mean the fundraiser Marcel is throwing? I already have my invite. What I don't have is a dress. Want to come shopping with Cami and I?" Imogen asked sincerely as she canted her head to the side and looked at the blonde next to her with honest blue eyes that made Rebekah feel slightly guilty as she nodded politely.

"I would love to."

"Good, because Cami may be an awesome friend but she has horrible taste in clothes!" the young witch said as she raised her voice at the end of the statement so that the bartender at the other end of the counter could hear her over the sound of the other patrons.

"Shut up!" Cami shouted back at her playfully as she poured a drink for a customer without looking at her friend and she fought the grin that spread across her lips at her friends teasing. She turned her head to look back at the brunette with a wink and saw that Imogen was sticking her tongue out at her as Rebekah tried to not laugh at their childish antics.

* * *

Rebekah and Klaus entered the party held by Marcel arm in arm dressed in formal wear and wearing knowing smirks on their faces as they looked around the room filled with vampires and human's alike.

"Well, this certainly is a fitting backdrop for tonight's events, I must say." Klaus mused softly as he looked around at the dancing people, falling confetti and flutes of champagne that were being passed around on trays. His blue eyed gaze flickered around the crowded ballroom for any sign of Marcel as he grabbed two flutes of champagne from a passing waiter's tray and silently handed one over to his sister.

Rebekah made an appreciative noise in the back of her throat as she took the offered flute and delicately lifted it to her lips as she sipped the bubbly liquid. She ran a hand down the front of her stunning black floor length gown that she had brought earlier that day when she went shopping with Imogen and Cami.

The youngest Mikaelson couldn't remember a time when she had just been shopping with girlfriends without a devious motivation behind the event but today she genuinely had a good time shopping, getting her nails done and talking about pointless topics. Rebekah felt guilty for trying to use the young witch earlier but she had soon learned that Imogen was not one to be used or manipulated.

"Everything is in place." Rebekah murmured to her brother softly so that no vampire at the party would overhear them as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

"What's she doing here?" Klaus asked suddenly in a dangerously low voice as he looked at something or someone on the opposite side of the ballroom and Rebekah followed his gaze with a confused frown to see a familiar brunette.

Imogen stood near the entrance with her head held high in confidence as she looked around the room filled with vampires and smirked to herself when many heads turned in her direction. Her floor length white gown was perfectly crafted to her thin body and her long brunette hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun. She offered a passing waiter a small smile as she took the flute of champagne that he presented to her and looked around the ballroom for someone in particular.

"What better way to distract Marcel than to put his very delicate, new girl in a room chock full of vampires?" Rebekah asked rhetorically with a small smirk when she saw the anger in her older brother's eyes as he looked at the young witch and she wondered why he was having such a reaction to her presence.

Imogen's blue eyed swept around the ballroom for Marcel as she delicately sipped her champagne and she smiled when she caught sight of a familiar blonde crossing the room towards her. Rebekah sauntered across the ballroom as though she owned the entire room and people stopped to stare at the beautiful blonde but she barely noticed them.

"Rebekah. You look incredible." The young witch complimented her with a sincere smile as Rebekah came to a stop in front of her and grinned back at her with mirth twinkling in her cerulean blue eyes.

"Hello, darling. You look precious." Rebekah greeted her warmly as she grasped Imogen's forearms in her hands loosely and glanced down at her stunning gown as she nodded to herself in approval.

"This party is ridiculous. I hate these things." Imogen complained with an eye roll as she glanced around the ballroom in distaste and smiled friendly at some of the vampire's that she knew. Her blue eyes locked on the familiar man curly light brown hair and light blue eyes that she had seen around with Marcel and she noticed him running his gaze down her body but it surprise her that it wasn't in a sexual way. "Is he your date for the night?"

"He's the brother, actually, and my sister is right. You do look stunning." The man said in a British accent like Rebekah's as he approached them from behind and smiled charmingly at the young witch as she tilted her head to side in consideration.

"You clean up pretty well yourself."

"Well, don't be fooled, love. I'm the devil in disguise." He responded in amusement with a smirk on his lips as he lifted his champagne flute up to his mouth and Imogen quirked an eyebrow at him as a smirk fought its way onto her own lips, knowing very well that he was speaking the truth.

"You two chit-chat. I need booze." Rebekah said in a bored voice as she looked between the two of them with a hint of pleasure in her blue eyes and they both nodded as she turned on her heel to go find the bar.

"Shall we?" The man asked her as he held out his arm for her to take and she nodded at him as she slipped her arm into the crook of his elbow before directing her towards the opposite end of the bar that Rebekah had gone to.

"So, I already know who you are but are you going to introduce yourself?" Imogen asked him playfully with a smirk as they came to a stop at the bar counter and he chuckled softly as he held up his hand for the bartender at the other end of the bar. "You're being very rude."

"Klaus Mikaelson." He introduced himself with a self-assured smirk on his handsome face as held out a hand for her to take and the young witch smirked back at him as she placed her hand in his.

"I figured as much. Congratulations, by the way." She said to him nonchalantly as she pulled her hand away and leaned on the bar to wave impatiently at the bartender. Klaus gave her an incredulously frown as she sighed at the lack of attention from the bartender and turned back to face him with a polite smile. She tilted her head to the side in consideration when she saw the baffled expression on his handsome face. "On breaking your hybrid curse. I highly doubt anyone has said that to you, mainly because of the sacrificing and death, but breaking a curse after thousands years is no easy feat. Congratulations."

"Thank you." Klaus replied with a chuckle as he offered her a genuine smile and leaned his elbow on the bar top as he looked at her as though he was seeing her for the first time.

At the other end of the bar, Rebekah sighed slightly as the human bartender hired for the event appeared in front of her and she smiled at her flirtatiously as she leaned forward a little.

"Scotch, please." She told him softly as she batted her eyelashes slightly and he smirked back at her as he nodded in acknowledgement.

"You trying to be cute, inviting her here?" Marcel asked her as he appeared at her side with a frown on his handsome face and Rebekah sighed to herself as the bartender walked away to get her drink for her.

"I think she's darling. I can tell you fancy her pure heart. Perhaps I'll feed it to you." She said with a tight smile on her lips as she turned her head to glance at him and ignored the familiar tightening of her stomach as she swept her cerulean blue gaze over his tuxedo clad body.

"Hmm. Jealousy looks good on you, Bekah."

"You can relax. Imogen was the one to approach me, not the other way around." Rebekah admitted to him with a small smile as the bartender approached her with her glass of scotch in hand and he placed it down in front of her as he winked in her direction.

"She has no sense of danger." Marcel mumbled fondly as he looked over his shoulder at the other end of the bar where the young witch was speaking to Klaus and smiled slightly when she glanced over in his direction.

Across the room at the other end of the bar, Imogen tilted her head to the side slightly in consideration as she watched Marcel and Rebekah interact with one another and she could practically see the tension coming off the two of them.

"Earlier when we were shopping, Rebekah mentioned an on and off again relationship. The guy she was talking about... I'm sensing that would be Marcel." Imogen admitted to the hybrid next to her as she leaned her elbows on the bar counter and Klaus turned his head to follow her bluish gaze over to his darling little sister and Marcel.

"I wouldn't worry about it. Ancient history." Klaus told her honestly as he narrowed his light blue eyes at his protégé and felt a protective rage in his chest as he lifted his glass of scotch to his lips.

"I'm beginning to think your sister is a bit of a bitch." She said drily as she looked back him with a quirked eyebrow and he laughed out loud at the understatement as he nodded his head in agreement.

"It's as though she invented the term."

"I like it. She's honest. Not a lot of people are these days." The young witch murmured quietly as she sipped her glass of wine and she noticed the confused looked the Original hybrid was giving her so she sighed as she nibbled on her lower lip. "People tend to only tell you what they want or what they think you need to know. Rebekah is blunt. She doesn't just tell you what she thinks you want to know. Even though she wants people to like her for who she is, she refuses to lie just for their benefit. Honesty is something I value. I understand the value of duplicity but candour is a quality that only a certain few have."

"That's certainly an astute perceptive for someone so young." Klaus commented softly as he looked into her sincere bluish eyes and felt himself actually wanting to know more about the young witch next to him. Imogen smiled a little as she sipped her wine and turned away from his intense light blue eyes as she shrugged delicately.

"Imogen!" she heard a familiar voice call out to her from behind and she subconsciously smiled as she turned around in surprise to face the dark skinned vampire that was approaching her with a charming smile on his lips.

"Marcel. Finally decided to grace us with your presence, I see." Klaus greeted the man with a smirk as he turned the vampire that he raised as his own but saw that all of Marcel's attention was on the brunette witch besides him.

"Hey. Killer party." Imogen joked in a flirty voice as she took a step towards the dark eyed man and he chuckled lightly as he leaned forward he press a lingering kiss to her cheek. She internally cursed herself as her heartbeat started racing at the contact but had to smile slightly as Marcel pulled back with a smirk on his lips.

"Sorry I took so long. I got caught up talking to the mayor." Marcel apologised to her softly as he stepped closer to her side and she shook her head with an understanding smile as she placed her wine glass down on the bar counter top.

"No explanation necessary. You do your thing, I'll entertain myself."

"What, leave you alone, looking the way you do? Hell with that." he protest sincerely as his dark brown eyes raked over her toned body a lustful glint and he grinned a little when he heard her heart rate exhilarate.

"Come on then. I want to dance." She told him with a teasing smile as she gripped one of his hands on hers and began walking towards the dance floor as he chuckled softly in amusement at her forceful attitude but allowed her to pull him along behind her.

Klaus watched the young witch lead Marcel to the dance floor as he sipped his bourbon carelessly and tried to ignore the protective urge he had to rip Marcel's hands off the brunette's waist. He had only ever felt this way towards Rebekah and more recently, towards a certain blonde baby vampire back in Mystic Falls and it terrified him that someone he had only spoken to once could make him feel anything.

Rebekah couldn't help the swell of jealousy she felt as she subtly watched Marcel dance with his arms around Imogen from the corner of her eye and she walked over to stand next to her older brother at the bar.

"You really are a hideously evil little thing, aren't you?" Klaus asked her with an expressionless look on his handsome face as he watched Marcel twirl the brunette under his arm and he could hear her laugh in delight as the dark skinned vampire caught her in his arms with a charming smile.

"Nonsense. They're perfect for each other. You wanted Marcel distracted—voilà." Rebekah said brightly with a smirk as she looked over at her brother and quirked an eyebrow at his unusually serious expression as he shook his head slightly. "What's the matter with you? Your plan is working, Marcel is sufficiently distracted and I made a lovely new friend."

"Nothing is the matter, little sister."

Imogen giggled slightly as Marcel twirled her under his arm and grinned as he pulled her back into his arms expertly. She couldn't help the feeling of happiness she felt when his muscular arms snaked around her thin waist and held her close to his body in an almost protective position because she wasn't used to feeling safe like she was right then.

"You're quite the dancer." Marcel commented with a smile as he tightened his hold on her waist and watched her expression lighten slightly as he spun her around before bring her back into the confines of his arms.

"Thank you. I've had training." Imogen told him with a small smile as she quirked an eyebrow at him playfully and looked into his dark brown eyes as he chuckled at her in amusement. The jazz music changed into a slow song as she glanced down at the ground quickly before looking back up with a small smile and Marcel grinned at her as she wrapped her arms around his neck comfortably.

Marcel couldn't help the small ache in his chest as he looked into her bluish eyes that held too much knowledge for someone her age and he tightened his grip on her thin waist as he thought about what she had hold him about her past. He couldn't imagine anyone wanting to harm the beautiful girl in his arms and the mere thought of it made him want to rip their hearts out so that they couldn't so much as touch her ever again.

The tension between the two of them of palpable as they slowly danced with their arms around each other and they both subconsciously stopped moving as they stared into each other's eyes.

Imogen's breath caught in her throat as her heart began racing as she looked into his dark brown eyes that were darkened with lust and she unintentionally bit her lower lip as his gaze quickly darted to her lips before returning to her eyes. She glanced down at his lips as he started to lean into her and her eyes fluttered closed as she also leaned into him in anticipation.

"Marcel…" a familiar male voice interrupted them when they were only an inch away from each other and Marcel growled in the back of his throat as he pulled away from Imogen reluctantly. He turned his head to the side to see one of his daywalkers standing to the side of the couple with an apologetic look on his face and fought the urge to rip his head off his shoulders for disturbing them.

"Diego, I'm going to kill you." Imogen said drily as she sighed heavily and shook her head slightly as she took a step back from Marcel so that she wasn't pressed up against him but was still encircled loosely in his arms.

"Sorry, guys, but this is urgent." Diego apologised to them as he stepped closer to them so that no one would overhear what he was going to say and leaned down to whisper in the king's ear in case he didn't want Imogen to know what was going on either.

Imogen licked her lip slightly nervously as she waited patiently for the two vampire's to finish conversing and took her time to look around the crowded ballroom as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She glanced back over at Marcel and Diego to see a thunderous expression on his handsome face and she frowned in concern as she stepped back out of his arms.

Marcel froze when he heard that his right hand man Thierry had killed another vampire in order to protect his witch girlfriend and couldn't help the feeling of betrayal in his stomach as he glanced over to the side of the room where the blonde vampire stood with an entourage of guards.

"Excuse me." Marcel murmured quietly to Imogen without taking his dark brown eyes off of Thierry as he squeezed her hand once in apology and then began striding purposefully towards the group near the edge of the dance floor with Diego trailing after him.

Imogen nodded silently as she watched him approach a group of vampire's and frowned in confusion as she saw the dark skinned vampire grab Thierry by the throat before pushing him backwards so that they were not visible to the rest of the party.

The music from the ball could vaguely be heard by the group of vampires as the reigning King of New Orleans pushed Thierry up against the hard brick wall so that his head connected with a thud and he glared at the other vampire as he tightened his hold on his throat.

"What the hell did you do?"

* * *

Marcel sat silently on the longue in the private penthouse apartment he kept for himself in the French Quarter for whenever he needed to take a step back from the supernatural aspects of his life and sighed to himself as he leaned back on the comfortable couch in the longue room. After the events of that night all he wanted to do was kick back with his feet up and drink his body weight in alcohol because he couldn't believe that his best friend, the man that had been by his side for the last 70 years had betrayed him.

The night had started out perfectly for him at the ball with Imogen in his arms for the first time but had ended up with him sentencing his friend to 100 years in the Garden and agreeing to return Elijah's body to the Mikaelson's after Klaus had saved his life by killing the witch that attacked him.

The dark skinned vampire groaned loudly to himself as he sat back up as he reached for the nearly empty bottle of scotch on the coffee table in front of him and picked it up to pour the rest of the liquid into the glass besides it. The bottle wobbled slightly as he carelessly placed it back on the table and lifted the glass to his lips as he sighed heavily.

A gentle knock at the first door echoed loudly throughout apartment as he drained the glass of scotch and he frowned in confusion as he looked over at the door before standing up from the couch. He hesitantly walked over to the door as he pursed his lips in annoyance and swung up the door with his mouth open to yell at whoever dared bother him but words escaped him as he caught sight over the person on the other side.

"What are you doing here?" Marcel asked softly as he leaned his shoulder against the doorframe and ignored the ache in his chest as he tilted his head to the side in consideration.

"I heard what happened." Imogen explained with a delicate shrug of her shoulders as she leaned on the opposite side of the doorframe and looked into his dark brown eyes for some sign of how he was coping. She pulled her hand out of behind her body as she smiled slightly and held up an unopened bottle of scotch for him to see. "I brought alcohol."

"Then come on in." he said to her softly as he stepped back so that she could walk past him into the apartment and she nodded once as she handed him the bottle silently before going into the longue room.

"Nice place."

"Thanks. Imogen, what are you doing here?" Marcel asked her in confusion as he crossed his arms over his board chest and watched her fondly as she looked around his place with a critical eye. She turned around to face him with a small half-smile on her beautiful face and he had the sudden urge to kiss her but stayed where he was as she stepped forward a step.

"I have absolutely no idea what you're feeling. I've never had to make decisions for the good of the many like you do every single day, like you had to do tonight. But I do know that Thierry is, or was your best friend and you lost him tonight. Losing someone you care about? That's something I know about." Imogen answered him honestly as she nibbled on her lower lip nervously and tilted her head to the side as her bluish eyes locked onto his dark brown ones. "I can't do anything to help your pain, but I can just be here."

"You're amazing." He blurted out unintentionally as he stared at her stunning blue eyes that were filled with sincerity and he chuckled sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. He watched as Imogen breathed out an unbelieving laugh as she shook her head in denial and lick her lip nervously as she looked down at the ground in embarrassment. Marcel placed the bottle of scotch she brought down on the coffee table as he walked closer to where she was standing across the room and slowly approached her as she crossed her arms over chest almost protectively. "I'm being serious. Imogen, you are amazing."

"I'm not…" she started to protest as she shook her head in denial and he felt a swell of rage over the fact that she couldn't believe someone when they told her how remarkable she was. He grasped one of her hands loosely in his as he stepped closer to her so that they were nearly touching and she looked up at him in surprise as her heart rate picked up speed as he cupped her cheek with his other hand.

"You. Are. Amazing." Marcel told her quietly as he caressed the warm skin over her cheek and stared into her bluish eyes as he tried to tell her silently with his actions. "Understand?"

Imogen sucked in a sharp breath as she stared into his dark brown eyes for any sign of dishonesty but all she could see was warmth and sincerity in their depths. It was strange for her to have someone complimenting her because all she had grown up with was disappointment and disapproval from her parents and the coven elders.

Slowly, she nodded her head in acknowledgement as she reached up to cover the hand that still cupped her cheek and felt warm tears sprung to her eyes as she blinked them away before Marcel could see them.

Marcel offered her a half-smile as he nodded once at her and felt a surge of disappointment as Imogen cleared her throat lightly before stepped back out of his reach. She gently grazed his side with her arm as she walked past him and stopped next to the coffee table to pick up the bottle of scotch.

"Are we going to get drunk or what?" Imogen asked him pointedly with a quirk of her eyebrow as she cocked her hip to the side and Marcel chuckled softly at her as he nodded in agreement before following her over to the couch in the longue room.


	3. Girl in New Orleans

**Bring Me To Life**

**Girl in New Orleans:**

Marcel stared down at the grey desiccated face of the handsome Elijah Mikaelson with a frown on his face as he knelt down next to the coffin the Original was lying lifeless in. He glanced over his shoulder at the young witch that was staring out of the church attic window at the French Quarter with a longing expression on her pretty face and he sighed a little in defeat because he knew that he was in part to blame for her melancholy.

"This sucker's resilient. He's like a cockroach in a suit." He uttered quietly as he looked back down at the corpse of the oldest Mikaelson and tilted his head to the side in consideration before pushing himself to his feet. "Doesn't matter. Time to give ol' Elijah back to Klaus, anyway."

"You asked me to figure out a way to kill the Originals. I'm not done! The silver dagger hurts them, but that's it." Davina protested in a hard tone as she turned around to face him with a frown on her face and he sighed heavily as he crossed his arms over his broad chest.

"Davina, we've been through this. Klaus saved my life, I owe him one. Since he wants his brother back– " Marcel trailed off with a pointed look in her direction as he offered her a small smile and she huffed in annoyance as she looked away from him.

Davina couldn't help but feel a little discouraged that she hadn't been able to find a way to help Marcel by finding a way to kill the Old Ones. She had all this magical energy flowing through her veins but she was completely hopeless to control it and it was times like this that she missed having someone that understood the electricity that came from using magic.

The last eight months had been incredibly lonely for her as she sat up in the church attic with no one but Marcel to speak to and no knowledge of the outside world other than letters that she had gotten from Imogen every month.

"Tonight's the annual Dauphine Street Music Festival. I wanna go. Please?" Davina asked desperately as she looked back at the dark skinned vampire with wide pleading blue eyes and she grasped her hands in front of her in a begging motion.

"The whole point of you being up here is so you're never spotted out there. You know who works smack in the middle of Dauphine Street? Sophie Deveraux. Pain-in-the-ass witch and you know what the witches will do to you if they find you."

"But you control the witches. Make her go away!" She exclaimed angrily as she stepped closer to him with her arms thrown out to the side in frustration and Marcel shook his head at her sadly in rejection as she pouted. "Marcel, its one night!"

"I said 'No'." Marcel told her firmly as he looked her right in the eye so she would know that he wasn't kidding around and tried to ignore the guilt he felt in his stomach as he saw her blue eyes dull slightly. He turned his back on her as he began walking towards the door that lead out of the attic and Davina stiffened in anger as she lifted her chin defiantly in the air with a blank expression on her pretty face.

"I do anything you say, but sometimes I think you forget what I'm capable of. Did you know I can make someone's blood boil? All I have to do is focus." The young witch said confidently as she narrowed her bluish green eyes at the back of his head and imagined his blood bubbling to a boiling point.

Marcel felt his entire body start to burn as he froze in shock at the door to the attic and he squeezed his eyes closed in agony as he felt his knees go weak but he stayed standing. He looked down at his hand and saw that it was covered in sweat from the heat coming from his blood as he heard a faint hiss from inside his body.

Davina smirked in satisfaction as he slowly turned around to face her with a pained expression on his handsome face and she narrowed her blue eyes at him as she quirked an eyebrow.

"Fine. We compromise, all right?" he ground out in between his teeth as he gave her a tight smile and she loosed the grasp on her magic so that it wasn't harming him anymore. Marcel sighed in relief slightly as he looked at her proudly for standing up for herself and he had to smirk at the resemblance between Davina and another young witch with blue eyes. "You going out alone—too dangerous. But, you wanted to see Imogen, right?"

"Imogen?" she whispered in a mixture of surprise and awe as she froze in her place and felt her eyes go wide as she stare at the dark skinned man in front of her.

"Maybe you can ask her to accompany you yourself." Marcel said to her with a sly grin on his lips as he watched a wide smile spread across her pretty face and she began bouncing on the heels on her feet as she fought the tears that had sprung to her eyes. "I'll be back in a minute."

Davina nodded rapidly in ascent as she clasped her hands in front of her mouth to stop herself from squealing happily in anticipation and he chuckled at her thrilled expression before turning around to stroll out of the attic door.

Downstairs in the old church, Imogen sat impatiently on the pew closest to the alter as she tapped her foot on the ground and glanced around at the walls as she tried to control the urge to run up the stairs to the attic where she knew Davina was. Marcel had made her promise to wait downstairs until he came and got her but it was proving to be difficult and she was growing more impatient by the second.

Marcel reached the bottom of the staircase with a smirk on his lips and saw the brunette lying down on the pew with her arms crossed over her stomach as she waited for him impatiently.

"Hey, pretty girl. You ready?" he asked her with a charming smile as he approached where she was lying and her bluish eyes fluttered open as she smiled softly at him before sitting up on the pew.

"More than." She chirped happily as she stood up from her seat and practically had to stop herself from skipping as she walked over to the bottom of the stairs where he was waiting for her. Imogen was sure that Marcel could hear her heart pounding with nerves as they made their way up to the attic and she took a deep breath as she tried to control her heart rate.

The last eight months of not seeing Davina had been torture for Imogen because not knowing exactly what was going on with the younger girl or if she was hurting in anyway, caused her heart to physically ache. She could stop the near silent gasp that escaped her when her gaze landed on the perfectly healthy teenage girl standing in the middle of the attic with a giant grin on her soft features and she blinked back tears as she ran forward as quickly as she could.

Davina's breath caught in her throat as she caught sight of the brunette woman who stepped into the room and her bluish eyes instantly filled with fresh tears as her lower lip trembled slightly. She watched as Imogen raced across the room without saying a word and she failed to repress the happy smile on her face as she was encased in the taller girl's tight embrace.

"I missed you." The younger witch murmured through her tears as she buried her face in the other brunettes shoulder and had to stop herself from sobbing when Imogen soothed her long hair back familiar.

"Oh, I've missed you too, little sister." Imogen whispered to her honestly as she pressed a kiss to the crown of the shorter girls head and closed her eyes tightly as tears sprung to her eyes. For years, Davina had been the only thing keeping her head above water and the last eight months were the hardest she had ever lived through.

* * *

Niklaus Mikaelson sauntered into Rousseau's with a self-assured smirk on his handsome face as though he owned the entire world and many people turned to subtly look to him as he passed by them. Many of the humans who didn't know about the supernatural world merely thought of him as a good-looking man that they didn't have a chance with and many of the daywalking vampires looked at him with a mixture of distrust and fear.

He had always given him a great deal of satisfaction when humans or vampire's alike treated him with trepidation and no one other than his siblings had ever stood up to him but that had changed in the recent months.

A blonde baby vampire by the name of Caroline Forbes had shown courage that he hadn't seen from vampire's twice her age and all for the benefit of her friends and family instead of herself. The first moment he had seen her Klaus had been shocked to his very core by her beauty and since he had inadvertently risked her life and then saved her life on her birthday, Caroline Forbes had completely invaded nearly every thought I had. She was beautiful, strong and full of a light that he couldn't come close to touching and the gorgeous blonde had him wrapped around her little finger with one flash of her exquisite smile as he couldn't imagine anyone being able to say no to her. This baby vampire had the most powerful creature in the world on his knees and she had no idea of her effect on him.

Putting any thoughts of Caroline out of his mind, he strolled over to the counter in the middle of the bar where another strong-willed blonde was standing behind the bar.

"Hello, Cami." Klaus said politely to the young blonde who was wiping down the counter with a rag and she jumped in surprise at his sudden appearance as she spun around to face him with wide blue eyes.

Camille O'Connell was instantly bombarded with memories of that morning in the hybrids study and she stumbled back a little as she stared at the vampire in front of her with wide eyes.

"How is it that when you come up to me now, and no one else is around, I suddenly remember that you just told me you're a vampire, and you're mind-controlling me? And then you leave, and then I go back to thinking you're just some hot guy with a cute accent and money to burn on your sprawling memoir?" Cami asked him in curious voice as she tilted her head to the side and blinked once as the memories cleared in her mind. She watched cautiously as Klaus placed his elbows on the counter and leaned in towards her so that no one would over hear them.

"Well, that's how compulsion works, love." He replied in a low voice that only she could hear as he tried to supress an amused smile at her curiosity and she subtly rolled her eyes at him as she stepped forward tentatively.

"Yeah, but what's happening? Is it hypnosis? Are my neurons being shut down somehow?"

"You're always the curious scholar." he stated with a smirk as he sat down on one of the empty stools on the other side of the counter and Cami blushed slightly at his words as she threw the cloth she was using in the sink behind her. "But we have to discuss other riveting subjects, like your lovely friend Imogen and her handsome suitor, Marcel."

"Excuse me? My private life is– "Cami started to protest indignantly as she shook her blonde head back and forth with a frown on her lips and Klaus rolled his light blue eyes at her as he leaned forward to look her in the eye.

"Your private life is, as it turns out, essential to my plans." Klaus interrupted her quickly as he gave her a pointed look and she scowled at him as she placed her hands flat on the bar top. "You see, Marcel wants your delightful little friend. And, because of that, he will trust her, and she trusts you, which serves me. The thing is, the French Quarter is on the verge of war. On the one side there's me, and on the other, Marcel. Along with a very powerful witch and an army of vampires. And I want to know what side Imogen lands on."

"What's Imogen got to do with a vampire war?" the blonde asked him in confusion as she frowned in concern for her brunette friend because she was the one person in New Orleans that had brought a little bit of light into her life since Sean had died.

"Oh, didn't I mention? Imogen's a witch."

"What!?" Cami asked loudly in shock as her mouth fell open and her blue eyes widened comically much to the Original hybrids amusement. Klaus pressed his lips together in a tight line to keep from laughing at the humorous picture she made as he tilted his head to the side and she closed her mouth when she realised that she was standing there stupidly. She ducked her head in embarrassment as she cleared her throat and tucked a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear as he chuckled silently.

"Now, let's talk about Marcel and Imogen. Do you have a little information for me?" He asked her calmly as she looked back up at him with hesitant eyes and she shifted on her feet as she internally debated whether or not to tell him what she knew.

"Imogen told me that Marcel's bringing someone to the music festival tonight. A girl he's mentoring. Apparently she's going through a hard time. Rebelling against authority, anger issues, that sort of thing. She asked if I was going to the festive but I said no." Cami informed him honestly in a small voice as she nervously ran her tongue over her upper lip and tried to ignore the guilt she felt at disregarding her friend's privacy.

Klaus knew immediately that the girl Cami was speaking of was indeed the young witch Davina but he had no idea why Imogen was accompanying the duo to the music festival other than the fact that maybe Marcel was using the witch as a means to show Imogen he's humanity as a seductive technique.

"I'm going to go ahead and insist that you change your answer to 'yes'." He told her in a polite tone but there was an undeniable authority in his voice and Cami stared at him defiantly for a moment as he quirked an eyebrow at her blank expression.

"You're going to force me to do this, aren't you? Why even bother with politeness?"

"Because I like you. I like the way your mind works. Under different circumstances, I think we might be friends. However, I don't have the luxury of passing up tonight's opportunity. You see, in addition to being Marcel's rather potent secret weapon, this girl, Davina, is holding my brother captive. In other words—"Klaus said calmly before leaning forward on the counter so that her blue eyes caught his and she watched in a thrall as his pupils dilated, "—the girl needs your help. Call Imogen. Tell her you're happy to go along."

"I'll be happy to go along." She repeated robotically as she stared into his light blue eyes and Klaus smiled in satisfaction as he broke the invisible connection between them. The bartender blinked her eyes in surprise as she frowned in confusion and immediately reached for her cell phone from the inside of her apron. "I don't want to do this. Imogen is my friend."

"I just need you to be my eyes and ears tonight, that's all." He assured her in a soft voice as he sat back on the stool and watched with a small smirk as Cami dialled a familiar number by memory on her phone.

"_Hey, good looking." _A familiar female voice said through the phone speaker as the blonde held the cell up to her ear and ducked her head to hide the smile that appeared on her lips at the sound of her friend's voice from the man in front of her.

"You do know this is Cami and not Marcel, right?" the blonde asked teasingly as she placed her elbow on the counter top and tried to ignore the holes that Klaus was burning into her as she looked away from him.

"_Hm. It's amazing what caller ID does. What's up?" _Imogen asked through the phone as Cami swallowed back the guilt in her stomach at what she was doing to her friend then though she wasn't actually doing anything as of yet and pursed her lips together as she tucked her blonde hair behind her ear.

"Well, I was able to get off of work early so I can meet up with you and Marcel tonight."

"_Really? That's awesome. What time do you finish so we can meet up with you at Rousseau's?" _the young witch asked excitedly as Klaus smiled in approval at the direction that the conversation was taking and Cami bit the corner of her lower lip in shame as tears filled her blue eyes.

* * *

Marcel's dark gaze swept over the assembly of vampire's in front of him as he stood at the entrance of Dauphine Street where the music festive was taking place and he smirked a little at the loyalty he had over the vampires of the Quarter. He looked around at the vampire's that had become his family since he took over control of New Orleans and smiled genuinely at how much had changed from the 1800's when he was a slave to the governor.

"Big event tonight, a lot of people drinking, a lot of eyes watching. I don't want any trouble, which means no witches except for Imogen. Send word through the Cauldron—any witches other than her come here, we kill them. And, while you're at it, no Originals, I don't like how Rebekah's been snooping around. I got my girl coming, her and a little friend of hers, I want eyes on them at all times; eyes only. Alright? I don't want anyone getting anywhere near either of them. Everybody's got a post, everybody keeps an eye out. You cool?" he asked them flippantly as he quirked an eyebrow at the collected group of vampire's and they nodded at the order in understanding before dispersing into the growing crowd of humans walking the streets. Marcel heard the familiar sound of a young girl giggling as he crossed his arms over his broad chest and he smiled fondly as he turned around to see the short brunette looking around her with a smile.

Davina spun around in a circle with the white skirt of her sundress flaring around her as took in the mass amounts of culture surrounding her and smiled broadly as the unwitting humans passed her by while she listened to the sound of music. It was amazing for her to be around people after being alone in the church attic for the last eight months and even before then she had been sheltered by her overprotected parents.

"Oh, my god…" the young witch whispered to herself in awe as she wrapped her arms around her waist and giggled happily as she looked around the music festival.

"Hey there, sweetheart." A familiar voice said from behind her as she bit her lower lip to stop from laughing out loud and turned around on her heel to face the dark skinned vampire that was standing behind her with an amused grin on his handsome lips. Davina clapped her hands together in front of her as she let out the delighted laughter that had been building in her stomach since she arrived at the festival and Marcel chuckled lightly at her as she practically skipped over to his side. "So, is it everything you hoped for?"

"Yeah!" Davina answered eagerly as she nodded her head enthusiastically and giggled a little as she linked her arm through his. The two of them strolled towards Rousseau's where they were going to be meeting up with Imogen as people passed them by without batting an eyelash at them and Davina found that she loved the invisibility that she had in the public setting where no one knew what a powerful piece she played the supernatural community.

Rousseau's was crowded with people enjoying the brass band playing on the stage set up at the back of the bar and Davina's bluish gaze instantly landed on the attractive boy around 16 who was sitting at a high table with his friends.

"So, we should probably go over the rules." Marcel said in a serious but reluctant voice as he pulled the young girl to a stop and he hated the way her face fell dramatically as he placed his hands on his shoulders to keep her in place.

"I won't talk to anyone about anything. I won't say anything about witches, or vampires, or Originals, or _you_." She recited to him with a sigh as she rolled her bluish eyes at him with a small smile on her lips and he nodded in acknowledgment as he allowed a fond grin to cross his handsome face. Davina saw the unburdened affection in his dark brown eyes as he released his hold on her shoulders and she ducked her head in embarrassment because she wasn't used to anyone but Imogen showing her warmth. "You said you weren't going to hover!"

"Yeah, Marcel. Go away." A female voice chimed in from behind the young witch as Davina laughed at the incredulous look on Marcel's handsome face and Davina's face immediately brightened as someone wrapped an arm around her shoulders from behind.

Marcel looked at the brunette standing behind the young girl as he felt a familiar warm spread throughout his chest and grinned at Imogen as she leaned her chin on top of her little sister's head with a fond smile on her lips. He looked over at her short purple floral sundress that she was wearing that showed off her long tanned legs and sucked in an unnecessary breath at how delicious she looked.

"You want me to leave?" he asked her in mock indignation as he frowned at her playfully and placed a hand over his heart as he took a step closer to the two witches standing in front of him. Davina chuckled softly at him as she placed her hand over her sister's and Imogen tilted her head to the side as she dramatically raked her bluish gaze over his body in mock inspection before turning to look at her little sister.

"What do you think, Pixie?" Imogen asked the younger witch with a small smile as she stepped forward to stand next to Davina and the shorter brunette pursed her lips together as she also mock inspected him.

"He can stay." Davina finally decided after a moment of silence as Imogen bit her lower lip to stop her laughter and Marcel let out a melodramatic sigh of relief as both of the girls laughed at him in amusement.

"Hm. Then I suppose I should say 'hello'. Hello." Imogen greeted him warmly as she let go of her sister's shoulders and sent him a small smile as he stepped forward to wrap his arms around her thin waist.

"Hello." Marcel replied easily with a fond smile as he pressed a chaste kiss to her soft skinned cheek and he grinned to himself when he heard her heart rate immediate accelerated at his touch.

A blush spread across Imogen's cheeks when she felt Marcel's lips gently brush against her cheek and she tried her hardest to keep her heart rate from speeding up because she knew that he could hear it with his superior vampire hearing. She couldn't help her attraction towards the dark skinned vampire and bit the corner of her lower lip as she struggled to keep the sigh from escaping her lips.

Davina watched the interaction between her older sister and the vampire who had protected her for the last eight months with a small knowing smile as she grasped her hands in front of her and bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly before sighing loudly to get the grownups attention away from each other. Imogen and Marcel both quickly looked away from each other to glanced at the younger witch as they fidgeted uncomfortably and Davina quirked an eyebrow at them innocently.

"Can we go now?" Davina asked them pointedly as she tapped her foot impatiently and Imogen rolled her eyes at her little sister as she smiled fondly before nodding her head with a laugh. Marcel kept his arm around the older witch's waist as he began ushering them towards the bar where he saw a familiar blonde headed woman behind the counter and Davina skipped in front of them with a happy smile on her pretty face.

Cami looked up from pouring a patron a glass of scotch when she heard the familiar sound of her friend's laughter and had to smile at the bright light in Imogen's bluish eyes as she leaned into the dark skinned man next to her.

"Hey!" the blonde greeted them warmly as she turned around to stand in front of them when they stopped on the other side of the counter and she smiled at the teenage girl who jumped up on the barstool with grin on her lips.

"Hi, sweetie." Imogen replied easily as she sat down on the seat next to the teenage girl and Cami immediately noticed the similarities between the two girls in front of her as her blue eyes widened in shock. The older brunette smiled at the surprised expression on her friends face as she felt Marcel stand behind her and Davina grinned wickedly at the confused look on the stranger face as she shifted on her face. "Oh, this is my little sister, Davina. Davina, this is my friend from school, Cami."

"Nice to meet you." Davina chirped with a happy smile as she glanced at the blonde before turning her gaze to the stage where a new band was setting up to play and Cami chuckled lightly at her teenage attention span as she nodded once in greeting.

"I didn't know you had a sister?" Cami said in a questioning tone as she picked up a cloth from the sink and started cleaning a glass as she looked over at her friends.

"Yeah, Davina goes to an all-girls boarding school here in the city so I don't get to see her much during the school year. She's actually the reason Marcel and I met." The older brunette informed her with a small smile as she looked over her shoulder at the dark skinned man behind her and he grinned down at her as he placed his hand gently on her hip from behind. "Marcel holds fundraisers for the school every year and Davina was chosen as an ambassador for her grade."

"It's good to see you, Cami." Marcel greeted the blonde with a grin as he moved to side to lean his hip against the bar counter and the bartender smiled at him as she moved to serve another customer at the end of the bar. As soon as he saw the she was out of hearing range he leaned down so that his lips grazed the shell of her ear and smirked confidently when her heart rate accelerated at his intimate position. "You're very good at lying on the spot."

"Hmm. You should see I can do you the spot." She whispered back huskily with a sly smile on her lips as she turned her head slightly so that his lips brushed her ear and he fought back a groan at the on slaughter of mental images her words caused.

Marcel let out a weary chuckle as he shook his head a little at her with a charming grin and she ducked her head sheepishly at her own behaviour as she giggled a little. His grinned slowly morphed into a small genuine smile as he glanced down at her lips before looking back into her bluish eyes and leaning in towards her as he bent his head.

"Anyway, I'm almost done here until clean-up." Cami announced her presence to the two of them as she walked back where they were sitting and they broke eye contact to look at her as she smirked knowingly at them.

"Great, so the three of us girls can hang out if you need to go schmooze, or whatever." Imogen informed Marcel with a flirty smile as she placed her elbow on the counter and nodded her head in the direction of the general public.

"You know, he was supposed to stop hovering like, ten minutes ago." Davina reminded them as she leaned backwards on her stool without taking her eyes off the stage and Marcel mocked scowled at her as she turned her head to smile at him warmly.

"See what I mean? Authority issues! I'll go talk to the mayor—he actually knows how to show some respect!" Marcel said playfully as he winked at Cami from across the counter and they all chuckled at him as he pressed a lingering kiss to Imogen's temple before pointing a warning finger at the younger brunette. Davina held her hands up in mock surrender as he walked away from the trio of girls and Cami chuckled at the dynamics at play as she threw a rag into the sink behind her.

Imogen's bluish gaze followed his movements as he walked away and shook her head at herself as she turned back to her sister who was watching the stage intently from her stool.

"Hey, what's his name? Hot guy with the fiddle?" Imogen asked her playfully as she nudged her shoulder with her hand and Davina turned her head to see her older sister and Cami both looking at her expectantly.

"Tim." Davina replied with a shy smile on her lips as she ducked her head in embarrassment that she was caught staring at him and Imogen gasped a little in shock as she looked back over at the teenager boy playing the fiddle on the stage.

"That's Timmy?"

"I knew he would be here, he always performs at these kinda things." Davina told her as she nodded enthusiastically and nibbled on her lower lip as she peeked at him from the corner of her eye.

"How long have you two known each other?" Cami asked her curiously as she leaned on other side of the bar counter and grinned as she looked from the young brunette to the teenage boy on stage.

"Since we were ten. I had to change schools, and I didn't get to say goodbye. So, I was just hoping to talk to him tonight." The younger girl explained as the band finished playing their set and all the patrons in the bar applauded for them as Davina turned back to see Tim packing up his violin.

"Pixie, you have to be careful." Imogen warned her in a low voice as she leaned forward so that no one could overhear her over the loud music and the younger girl nodded vaguely in understanding as she continued to stare at the teenage boy leaving the stage.

Looking between the two sisters across from her Cami couldn't help but start to miss her twin brother, Sean and notice the undeniable devotion that could be seen around the two brunettes as they chatted animatedly as though they hadn't seen each other in months. The blonde had to smile a little as she watched Imogen try to discreetly peek out the corner of her ear at the dark skinned man across the room talking to the mayor and rolled her blue eyes when Marcel glanced over at the brunette when he thought she wasn't looking.

Imogen tapped her foot in time with the music as she waited patiently for Cami to finish her shift at the bar and couldn't help but place a hand on Davina's arm in order to silently reassure herself that she was really there with her after so long away. Feeling someone's gaze on her, she frowned a little to herself as she looked around the crowded bar until her eyes meet dark brown ones across the room and she ducked her head sheepishly as she smiled a little before glancing back up at Marcel. The lustful gleam in his eye made her stomach twist in a familiar way as she bit down on her lower lip and she shifted one her seat as she looked away before she could run across the room towards him.

"You can go you know." someone said next to her as she looked back towards the stage where a new band was setting up and Imogen spun her head around in surprise to look at Cami's amused expression.

"What?"

"Go spend some time with Marcel. I can keep an eye on Davina." Cami clarified for her as she nodded her head in the dark skinned man's direction and smiled at the sheepish look on the brunette's pretty face.

"I can't ask you to do that." Imogen protested weakly as she shook her head in denial at the blonde and cast one last longing look in Marcel's direction before glancing at her little sister lovingly as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Go!" Davina told her loudly in an annoyed voice as she spun around on her stool to face her sister and rolled her bluish eyes as she smirked knowingly at her sister. "I can hang out here with Cami for a little while. Go spend some time with Marcel. You know you want to."

"Oh, the sixteen year old knows everything?" the older brunette asked drily as she quirked an eyebrow at her and Davina nodded rapidly as she grinned happily in answer. Cami chuckled at the younger girl as she threw the rag she was using in the sink and walked around the other side of the bar counter with a smile. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" both the other girls answered at the same time as Imogen looked at them questioningly and Cami gave her friend's shoulder a small push off of the stool as Davina giggled at her sister's bright smile.

"Thank you. Love you both!" Imogen called as she jumped up from the stool with a grin and flounced off to the other side of the room as she dodged people in the middle of the crowded bar on her way to Marcel.

Cami watched as her friend approached the dark skinned man and smiled when she saw the charming grin brighten Marcel's face when he noticed the brunette haired beauty walking towards him. When she was satisfied that the couple on the other side of the room were completely engrossed in each other, the blonde turned to the teenager next to her with a mischievous smile as she bent her head low and Davina quirked an eyebrow at her sister's friend as she smiled a little.

"Let's go find him." Cami whispered playfully as she held her hand out to the younger girl and Davina grinned brightly as she jumped down from the stool with her hand in the blondes.

The two girls walked around the crowded bar towards as they tried to avoid the side of the room where Imogen and Marcel where dancing to the music the new band were playing up on the stage at the back of the bar.

The young witch bit her lower lip nervously as she looked around the crowded bar for the boy she had been crushing on since she was 10 and tightened her hold on Cami's hand to try to draw some comfort from the older girl. "Well, he couldn't have gone far, he just got off-stage a minute ago!"

"It doesn't matter, this was a stupid idea anyway." Davina admitted with a heavy sigh as she blinked the tears from her bluish eyes and swallowed as she shook her head sadly to herself.

"No, it wasn't! Davina– "

"Just forget it." The brunette said sternly as her bluish eyes glistened with unshed tears and she stole a quick glance at her sister before running out of the bar as fast as she could.

Cami watched her go sadly as she ran a hand through her blonde hair and sighed in distress as she looked back at the dance floor where Imogen was dancing with Marcel. She turned around on her heel as she decided to go and inform Imogen and Marcel that Davina had run off somewhere and stifled a gasp when someone appeared in front of her out of nowhere.

Klaus smirked to himself as she tried to compose her surprised features and placed a blank expression on her face as she straightened her spine defiantly. He looked over at the door that Davina had disappeared through before holding out a piece of paper for her to take and she glanced down at it in surprise as she pursed her lips in annoyance.

"Tell her this is from one of the musicians. She'll want to leave, and you're going to want to help her slip out the back exit so Marcel doesn't see." The hybrid said her as he ducked his head to look her straight in the eyes and Cami's pupils dilated as she stared at him entranced. "Whatever you do, don't let her out of your sight."

"You can't just – "she started to protest despite the compulsion her was using on her as she glowered at him and she stolen a quick glance at Imogen before turning back to Klaus but he was gone as she looked around the bar in shock. "Wait, Davina!"

Marcel held Imogen close to his body as they moved in time with the live music playing up on the stage at the back of the bar and breathed in her intoxicating perfume as he tightened his grip on her hips. He could perfectly hear the blood pumping in her veins as she wrapped her arms around his neck and he fought the urge to sink his teeth into her succulent skin because now wasn't the time for that as she pulled back a little as though she read his mind to look into his dark brown eyes. Her bluish eyes shined with a mixture of mirth, lust and bliss as he leaned his forehead against hers as they danced and he couldn't help but feel honoured that he was one the who made her feel that way.

Imogen could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins as she swayed in Marcel's strong arms and she knew by the look on his face that he was struggling to control his bloodlust with his mouth so close to her neck as she stepped back a little to look at his handsome face. She instinctively glanced down at his lips as the music came to a stop as they ceased dancing and his dark eyes darkened with desire as he watched her eyes dart down to his lips.

"Marcel?" an unfamiliar male voice interrupted the two of them as they both leaned forward and Imogen jerked back in surprise as she blushed in embarrassment. Marcel growled in the back of his throat as he took a small step back but kept his arm around his waist and turned his head to glare at the vampire that dared to disturb him.

The young man with wavy dark brown hair and dark brown eyes visibly flinched at the heated glare the self-proclaimed King sent his way as he shifted on his feet nervously and swallowed heavily as he glanced at the gorgeous brunette in the older vampire's arms.

"The reason you're here, Josh?" Marcel asked him impatiently as he scowled at the young vampire in front of him and Imogen supressed an impressed shudder at the authority in his voice as he spoke to the underling.

"Diego said he lost eyes on the younger girl and the blonde." Josh informed him in a timid voice as he took a step back from the dark skinned vampire in case he had a violent reaction to the news and the brunette's head snapped open instantly as she stared wide eyed the new vampire.

"What?" Imogen and Marcel both snapped at the same time as they both started walking off the dance floor quickly with Josh following them and Marcel grabbed Imogen's hand in his as he lead her out of the crowded bar.

Imogen felt her blood run cold the second the words left the unknown vampire's mouth and she gripped Marcel's hand in hers as he lead her out of the bar. Since the moment Davina was born, Imogen had taken her protective big sister role very seriously and already having failed to keep her safe once already in the last year wasn't a highpoint of her life. Every fibre of her being was urging her to find her little sister and keep her out of harm's way but as she ran down the crowded Dauphine Street she couldn't see any sign of Cami or Davina.

Marcel caught sight of a familiar head of blonde hair as he pulled Imogen down the populated street and automatically headed in Cami's direction as he hurried his haste.

"Where is she? Where's Davina?" Marcel asked frantically as they came to a stop in front of Cami and Imogen's free hand locked onto the blonde's arm as she looked at her friend pleadingly.

"She went to meet a boy, in St. Ann's church..." Cami explained in confusion as she looked between the couple with wide blue eyes and Imogen sighed in relief as she let go of her tight grip on the blonde's arm.

"Stay here in case she comes back." Imogen ordered her friend sternly as she looked the other girl dead in the eye until she nodded in agreement and then Marcel began leading the witch towards the church as Cami watched in concern.

* * *

An attractive young was lying unconscious on the floor of St Ann's church surrounded by broken glass and his broken body was severely injured as his lungs struggled to breathe but he fought for other swallow gasp.

Davina came running into the main room of the church as tears streamed down her cheeks as she looked around wildly for any sign of movement and gasped loudly when she caught sight of the mangled body lying on the floor.

"Tim!" the young witch exclaimed in a panic as she ran towards his prone form and knelt down next to him as she cried unashamedly. "Oh no, no, please! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you!"

Tim gasped in pain as she gently lifted his head on to her lap and she ran her fingers through his brown hair as she cried. All she wanted in that moment was her big sister to hold her in her arms but Imogen was nowhere to be found.

"One of the tragic consequences of war. Innocent bystanders. What terrible guilt you'll have to live with, young Timothy's blood on your hands." A British accented voice said from the other side of the church and Davina stilled in her movements as she lifted her head to glare at the Original hybrid in front of her. Klaus slowly made his way towards them as he tilted his head to the side in silently contemplation and the witch stiffened at his closeness as she watched him.

"Get away from him!" she spat at him angrily as she tightened her grip on Tim's shirt and Klaus raised his hand defensively as he took a step backwards.

"No, no, let's not be hasty. After all, I can heal him. All you have to do is ask." Klaus told her calmly as he crouched down on Tim's other side to look into Davina's bluish eyes and he narrowed his own in confusion when he was instantly reminded of another young witch with the same shade.

Davina bit her lower lip as she silently glanced down at the injured boy in her arms and thought about what Imogen would do in her situation because Davina was sure that the other girl would know exactly what to do. Imogen had instilled in her younger sister the importance of protecting those you love and Davina did indeed love Tim so that made her decision slightly easier as she looked back up at the hybrid in front of her.

"Please!"

"For you, Davina, with pleasure." He murmured with a smirk as he lifted his wrist to his own mouth and let his bloodlust overtake his features so that his irises were bright yellow like a wolfs and his fangs were elongated before biting into his skin. Davina watched in fascination as he held his bleeding wrist to Tim's mouth and the scarlet red blood dribbled into his open mouth as he swallowed the liquid greedily. the human boy sighed in relief as the disappeared and the skin that had been cut open by the broken glass was automatically healing as Klaus tilted Tim's head to the side so that he was looking into his eyes. "You will forget everything that happened after the concert, including the fact that you saw Davina."

"What?" Davina asked in a shocked whisper as she sat back on her heels and stared blankly at the hybrid as he looked at her with a trace amount of pity in his light blue eyes.

"If he remembers seeing you, he might come looking. If the witches learn of him, if they know you have a weakness, then poor Tim might end up as leverage in an awful scheme to control you. Again." He reminded her softly as he stood up from his crouched position in front of her and dragged Tim up with him as he turned the human so he could look him straight in the eye. "Okay, come on, up you come. Take your violin case with you. You'll remember losing the instrument backstage after the performance. You really should be more careful."

"Bye." Tim mumbled numbly as he picked up his empty violin case and walked down the aisle without turning around as Davina stood up to stare at his retreating back with sad bluish eyes.

"All fixed! And now, you owe me a favour." Klaus announced cheerfully to her as he smirked and Davina frowned at him but knew that she would have to deliver at some point because she had asked him for a favour.

The young witch bent down to picked up the smashed violin from the floor and when she looked up from her crouched position she saw that the Original hybrid had disappeared from the church. More tears fell down her cheeks as she wrapped an arm around her waist and stood up with the broken violin in her hands as she gently moved one of the strings so that it wasn't twisted.

"Davina!" she heard a familiar voice call out to her in a mixture of relief and panic as she turned around to face her older sister and Imogen ran straight at her as she wrapped her arms tightly around the shorter girl as though as was afraid Davina would disappear.

Imogen's breath caught in her throat when she saw her little sister standing alone in the middle of the church with a broken violin in her hands and tears streaming down her cheeks but all she could focus on was the fact that she was safe.

"What happened? What are you doing here?" Marcel asked the younger girl as he came to stand next to the siblings and looked her over with a concerned frown in case she was injured in some way. Imogen pulls back a little too cup her sister's face in her hands as she looked at her with concerned bluish eyes and Davina stepped back out of the embrace as she glared through narrowed eyes at the dark skinned vampire.

"I live here, remember?" Davina said angrily as she frowned at him before she turned on her heel and stalked out of the church towards the stairway that lead to the attic where her room was.

"What just happened?" Marcel asked himself out loud as he watched the younger girl disappear up the stairs and Imogen smirked knowingly as she turned to face him.

"That, my good sir, is the teenage years. They're going to be fun." Imogen said drily as she brushed a strand of brunette hair behind her ear and Marcel groaned as he shook his head in frustration.

* * *

Davina gently placed Tim's broken violin down on the table at the side of the room and smirked a little when she felt a presence in the attic that hadn't been there before she left for the night. She ran a finger along the edge of the wood as she walked past and felt a rush of magic energy in her stomach as she moved to stand next to the window. The floorboards creaked behind her as she used her magic to move the wind chimes in the window and she knew that they had come out of hiding without turning around to face them.

"It's all right, Davina. I don't mean you any harm, though I do think it's time we had a talk."


	4. Sinners and Saints

**A/N: All sections written in **_**italics**_** are flashbacks.**

**Bring Me To Life**

**Sinners and Saints:**

Elijah Mikaelson was said to be the oldest vampire in the history of the world but standing in the middle of the rickety old church attic with a teenage witch staring at him with a small knowing smile on her face made him feel like a newly changed fledgling and he swallowed roughly as he focused on the witch's pulsing carotid artery. He was having a hard time resisting the urge to let his bloodlust overtake him and sink his fangs into her throat until she was bled dry but he tried his hardest to ignore the parched feeling in his throat.

This happened to him every time that he woke up from being daggered by his younger brother Niklaus but he was at heart a gentleman and he would rather die a real death by a white oak stake then feed from a child.

"You're the one they call honourable." Davina stated more than asked him as she tilted her head to the side and studied his face that appeared to be in his late 20's with his high cheekbones, strong jawline, and straight nose that set off his hazel brown eyes. His skin was still slightly grey from his desiccated state and his designer suit was wrinkled from lying still in a coffin from months on end.

"Yes, that's what they call me." Elijah admitted with a small modest smile as he looked her right in the eye so that she knew he wasn't going to patronise her and straightened his suit jackets cufflink without taking his eyes off her. He slowly walked to the side of the room as he maintained eye contact and dragged a chair into the middle of the room before gracefully sitting down. "And yet, I followed my brother here to New Orleans to engage in a war. So, I ask you: does that sound honourable to you?"

"You don't look well." The young witch told him matter-of-factly as she smirked at him knowingly with a mischievous glint in her bluish eyes and Elijah was instantly reminded of the scratching dehydrated sensation in his throat from lack of blood over the last few months.

"Well, only this morning I had a mystical dagger embedded in my chest, so I'd say I'm holding myself together quite well." He quipped with a slight smile on his lips as he tilted his head to the side and she nodded in agreement with a small smile as the Original leaned forward in his seat. "Davina, I believe that you and I have the power to end a war between witches and vampires before it truly begins. I, by keeping my brother in line; you, by behaving like your true self—not some tool for Marcel or the witches."

"And why should I trust you?" she asked him pointedly as she quirked an eyebrow at him in question and he tilted his to one side in consideration as he glanced around the room quickly before refocusing on her.

"Well, for one thing, in spite of a ravenous hunger, I have not tried to take your blood."

"Why not? I'm the only one here."

"Even in my present condition, I would not feed from a child." Elijah told her resolutely with a steely glint in his brown eyes as he straightened the lapel of his rumbled suit jacket and Davina narrowed her eyes at him in deliberation as she pursed her lips together in a tight line.

The young witch slowly strolled over to the desk at the side of the room without taking her bluish eyes off of the Original in the middle of the room and reached out to pick up a hat pin from the table top with one hand. She noticed that Elijah was watching her every move carefully as she walked back over to stand in front of him and carefully pricked her finger with the pin so that a tiny drop of blood collected on the end.

The veins surrounding his eyes darkened with bloodlust as they became more prominent and he swallowed harshly against his basic instincts as he glanced down at the blood. Elijah stared at the scarlet reed liquid greedily as he struggled to keep his bloodlust from completely overtaking him and his veins were rubbed together like sandpaper as the scent of fresh blood overwhelmed his superior vampire senses.

A single drop of blood clung to the end of the metal needle as Davina carefully lowered it down to the vampire's lip and Elijah looked up into her bluish eyes as the blood landed on his tongue. The taste of the blood was euphoric as it spread throughout his entire body and he blinked once in surprise as his complexion returned back to his normal skin tone.

"AB negative. My sister says it's the rarest blood type in the world." Davina informed him proudly with a small smile as her eyes lit up at the mention of her sister and Elijah returned her smile of understanding as she turned on her heel to head over to her easel at the side of the attic.

The Original stood up from his seat in the middle of the room as the young witch picked up a piece of charcoal and began sketching as he strolled over to the window before brushing aside the curtain to glance at the busy French Quarter street below.

Davina tried to ignore his presence for the moment as she neatly drew an outline of the vampire on the sketch paper in front of her and Elijah smiled at street below longingly before he let the curtain fall back into place as he glanced at the desk next to the window.

"Do you play?" he asked her curiously as he gently picked up a broken violin from the desk and began walking back over to the seat in the middle of the attic.

"That's... not mine." The young witch answered hesitantly as she looked over at him to see what he was talking about and sadness leaked into her voice as she stared at Tim's violin in his nimble hands. Elijah sat back down on the wooden chair as he hummed in acknowledgement to her comment and began tinkering with the wires of the violin carefully.

Loud footsteps echoed from outside the attic door and Elijah's head shot up in surprise as he froze in his movements before glancing over at Davina to see her looking at the door in shock.

Marcel entered the attic bedroom with a wide grin on his handsome face as his dark brown gaze instantly landed on the petite brunette standing near her easel and she smiled at him brightly as he approached her.

"Good news, Little D. I'm moving you out this pile of dust." The dark skinned vampire informed her as he stopped next to her and she spun her head around to look at him with wide bluish eyes as she hand froze.

"Are you serious? When?" she asked him excitedly as she bounced her feet a little with a wide grin and she turned her whole body to face him as she tilted her head to the side curiously.

" Tonight. I just need to lock in the arrangements. How's our Original?" he asked her as he walked a few steps closer to the coffin that Elijah's body was stored in and Davina felt her eyes widen with panic as she stepped forward because she didn't want Marcel to know that the Original wasn't in there.

"Uh, don't disturb the body! I have a spell in progress." She lied to him with an easy fake smile on her pretty lips and she buried the swell of guilt she felt at lying to him as she told herself it was for a good cause.

"Bet you do. Pack up, 'kay? Only what you wanna take. I'll buy ya anything else you need." Marcel told her warmly as he walked back over to stand in front of her with a smile and Davina nodded rapidly as she giggled enthusiastically until a thought occurred to her. She stopped bouncing on her feet as she frowned slightly at him and he gave her a questioning look as she bit her lower lip nervously.

"Um, I just got Imogen back. Am I still going to be able to see her?"

"You know Imogen. Girl won't go away without a fight." He reminded her teasingly as he smiled fondly at the mere mention of the older brunette witch and Davina's contagious smile returned as she nodded her head again at him. Marcel grinned at her brightly with such love in his dark brown eyes that Davina felt another wave of guilt at lying to him but she needed to know more and she was sure that Imogen would have agreed with her.

A few moments after Marcel had exited the attic door Elijah appeared from behind the closet in the corner of the room and looked at the young witch curiously as he walked back over to the chair in the middle of the attic.

"You didn't reveal that I was awake." Elijah stated the obvious as he tilted his head to the side inquisitively and Davina lifted her chin up a little in defiance as she placed a piece of charcoal down on the side of the easel.

"We're not done talking yet." The witch said nonchalantly as she walked over to the small alcove below the window and sat down gracefully as she looked at him with a carefully constructed expressionless mask.

"You and Marcel seem very close." He commented as he gently picked the broken violin up from the desk where he had placed it and then sat down on the seat in the middle of the attic as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

"Marcel's my family." She told him adamantly as she twisted her head around to look out the small crack in the curtain where the small sliver of sunlight was coming into the room and she sighed softly as she placed her fingers in the warm light.

"And yet Marcel is someone who delights in harming the witches. Those people, I would think, you would consider family. This doesn't trouble you?" he asked her softly in concern as he frowned at her with genuine confusion in his melodic voice and Davina turned her head to look at him as she narrowed her bluish eyes dangerously.

"No. They deserve it."

"Why would you say that?"

"'Cause they're liars. All of them." Davina hissed angrily as she clenched her hands into fists at her side and Elijah frowned at her in confusion as he tilted his head to the side curiously. "Growing up my parents were always strict was me and my older sister, Imogen. It was worse for her because she always tried to keep their attention away from me and she was always the rebellious one. When Imogen turned 21, she and her best friend went on a road trip to experience life away from the coven."

_Imogen Claire couldn't help but laugh out loud in delight as she watched her best friend Sophie Deveraux climb onto a bar stool drunkenly in her high heels with an empty bottle of tequila in her hands and clapped her hands together as quickly pushed her way through the crowded bar to stand next to the bar counter where Sophie was standing._

"_This is how we party in Rio!" Sophie shouted loudly over the music as she lifted the hand holding the bottle of tequila into the air and everyone in the bar cheered wildly as she started drinking straight form the bottle. _

"_Woo! Drink up everybody!" Imogen cried out as she held out her hand to help the other brunette off of the bar counter and Sophie laughing loudly as she shook her head as though to say that she wasn't coming down. "Come on, I want to dance."_

_Sophie giggled uncontrollably as she sat down on the edge of the bar counter and swung her legs happily as she held the alcohol above her friend's head with a grin on her lips. Imogen laughed cheerfully as she opened her mouth wide while tilting her head back and Sophie snickered giddily as she poured the liquid into the other brunette's awaiting mouth. As Imogen swallowed the burning tequila in one gulp, Sophie leaned down to press her lips against hers and roughly cupped her cheek in her hand as she wound her hand in her friend's long brunette hair._

_Imogen gasped slightly in surprise as Sophie's lips melded against hers but she quickly responded to the kiss as she was pulled closer to the counter by her hair and she swiped her tongue across her best friend's soft lips as she silently asked for entrance. The other girl opened her mouth sightly to allow their tongues to meld together in a fight for dominance as Imogen placed her hand on Sophie's upper thigh where it sat on the bar counter and Sophie moaned when she dug her nails gently into her skin. _

_The crowd around them cheered loudly as they pulled away from each other with matching grins and started giggling hysterically as they looked around at the leering audience surrounding them. Imogen snatched the bottle of tequila out of her friend's hand with a wink in her direction and Sophie laughed at her as she flounced into the middle of the dance floor with men trailing after her with love-struck expressions. _

"While she was away and couldn't do anything to stop them, my mother enrolled me in the Harvest. They made me and my friends do this Harvest ritual. They said our participation would bring our family strength, health... that we'd forever be celebrated as saviours of the community. But all they really wanted was more power. So, I left before they could get it." Davina explained to him with a hard glint in her bluish eyes as pressed her lips in a tight line and took a deep breath to calm her scattered nerves before narrowing her eyes at him. "Now, they're running out of time, because after the Harvest, comes the Reaping. And if they don't complete the Harvest, there won't be a Reaping. Soon, all the witches in the Quarter will start to lose their power. Eventually, they will cease to be witches altogether."

"So what does it take to complete this ritual?"

"I have to die."

Elijah couldn't help the shocked expression from crossing his face as he stared at her in horror because the story the young witch was telling him wasn't anything like the one he had been led to believe and he was stunned by the revelation she had inadvertently dropped on him. He cleared his thought slightly as he looked down at the violin in his hands so that he didn't have to look into the innocent bluish eyes of Davina and he heard her stand up from her seat as he fiddled with the strings of the instrument.

"So, enlighten me. What did you mean when you said you had to die?" he asked her in a soft voice as he looked up at her and she glanced over her shoulder at him with a slight smile as she got her suitcase from the closet near the side of the room.

"That was what the Harvest was. They said they'd put us four girls in a state of, like, peaceful limbo as part of the offering. And then later, at the Reaping, we'd awaken and be reborn. I never got as far as the limbo part, which means the Harvest isn't complete. That's why the witches are so freaked out. The Reaping is just around the corner, and if they don't finish it before then, it's over. All I have to do is wait it out." Davina informed him as she walked over to the bed with the suitcase in her hands and placed it down on the top of the bed as she unzipped the lid easily.

"And then what?" he asked her politely as she moved over to the closet to grab a handful of shirts on coat hangers and stopped in the middle of the room to quirked an eyebrow at him with a small smirk on her lips.

"They're punished, and I'm free." She said to him with a malicious glint in her eyes that made him internally cringe at how much it reminded him of his late younger brother Kol and he nodded once as she walked her back over to her suitcase.

"From Marcel?"

"Of magic. All our power will drain away. I'll be normal." The witch admitted in a small voice as though she was speaking to herself rather than him and she looked over at him with a small smile as tears started to build in her bluish eyes.

"Is that what you want? To be normal?" Elijah asked her sympathetically as he tilted his head to the side in pity and he could see her blinking back tears as she turned away from him so that he didn't see her apparent weakness.

"I just don't wanna be what I am. I can't control it sometimes. Magic. I... hurt people. Even when I don't mean to." She confessed to him as she felt hot tears fill her eyes and she cleared her throat as she zipped up her suitcase with her shaky hand now that it was full of the clothes she wanted to take with her to her new location.

Elijah looked at the young girl in front of him as he tilted his head back and for the first time since he woke up in the old attic he took a real look at the teenage girl beneath the powerful witch surface because he could see her about to break under all the pressure that had been cast upon her. Something inside him was telling him that he needed to take her mind off

"Why don't you tell me about your friends. You must miss them."

"There's Tim. He doesn't know about any of this witch stuff. He's normal." Davina told him with a wistful smile on her lips as she sunk down onto the edge of the bed next to her suitcase and she risked a quick glance at the violin in his hand before looking back into his intense brown eyes. thinking about the one person in the world that she cared about losing during the Harvest made her eyes water as she swallowed roughly and cleared her throat delicately as she lifted her head boldly. "My best friend, Monique. She was a part of the Harvest too. She's lucky. We're the only ones who had someone to speak out for them. The only people who ever spoke out against the Harvest were my sister and Monique's aunt."

"And who is that?" Elijah asked her as his forehead furrowed in confusion and leaned forward in the seat as he listened intently to her answer in case there was a chance at making a new ally out of one of the witches.

"Sophie Deveraux." The young witch admitted with a sigh as she glanced down at the ground in hilt because she knew that it was because of her that Imogen was no longer speaking to her best friend and she knew that it was hurting her sister even if she didn't admit it to anyone. "No one but Sophie and Imogen ever questioned the Harvest. Not even my own mother. So neither did I. We thought it was such an honour, we had such faith. We were so stupid."

"So how did it begin?" he asked as he pushed aside the shock of finding out the truth about Sophie because she had been the one to track him down and link herself to Hayley in an effort to control him and his family for their own benefit.

"We were led out like princesses. My mother was so proud. Bastiana, one of the Elders, called upon the four elements to bind our past and future magic together. Earth, to connect us to our ancestors. Water, to heal the community. Wind, to carry us to our ancestors and back. Fire, to purify. After all our preparation, we knew exactly what to expect. For weeks they told us that the magic in the knife they used to cut our palms would put us to sleep, and that later at the Reaping, we would all be resurrected. They said we'd awaken, and all be together and more powerful than ever. And it was just like we rehearsed it. All that was left was a little cut on our palms for the blood sacrifice. Even after Sophie and Imogen tried to stop it, we didn't suspect anything."

_The stars were shining bright overhead as four beautiful teenage girls wearing long white flowing white dresses were lead into Lafayette Cemetery by the New Orleans witch coven elders and they approached the group of other coven members that were standing in a loose semi-circle around four birdbaths with a clear liquid. _

_The four girls stood proudly in front of their coven as an aging witch with red hair made her way up to the centre of the semi-circle and the air surrounding the assembled mass of witches crackled with energy as she used magic to light the clear liquid on flames. _

"_Our magic fades as our ties to our ancestors weaken over time. We beseech them, accept this offering as a sign of our faith." The aging witch pronounced in a steady voice as her gaze swept over the people in front of her and she inclined her head upwards as everyone stared at her in reverence._

_Slowly the four young witches standing in the middle of the crowd of people knelt down onto their knees as the flames grew higher and the red haired elder stepped forward to tap each girl gently on the forehead as she offered them each a nod of approval. When she reached the girl at the end of the row she gestured for the girl to stand up and the beautiful blonde smiled nervously as she rose to her feet. _

"_No!" a young female voice called out pleadingly from behind the group of gathered witches and everyone turned to see a pair of brunette women in their early twenties running towards the semi-circle as fast as they could. "Stop! Bastiana, stop!"_

"_You have to stop, Bastiana, please don't do this!" the other brunette woman begged desperately as they approached the edges of the circle and began pushing their way to the front of the group but were quickly restrained by two male members of the coven before they could intervene with the ritual taking place. _

_Imogen screamed uselessly against the hand that was covering her mouth as she struggled to get out of the male warlocks grasp but he just held her tighter and tears streamed unabashed down her cheeks as she stared at her little sister helplessly. _

"_To be born, you must sacrifice. Do you have faith?" Bastiana asked the young blonde girl as though there had been no interruption and the girl looked nervously over at her mother before turning back to the elder. The blonde nodded her head in response as she obediently held out her hand for the blood sacrifice like she had been told to in practice the day before and Bastiana grasped a large knife in her hand before slitting the girls throat in one swift motion._

"Everyone involved in the ritual knew that this would happen." The Original spat out like the words had left a disgusting aftertaste in his mouth as he tried to ignore the outrage to felt on the girl's behalf and leaned back on his chair as his hand automatically tightened on the instrument in his hand.

"Except the four of us. They weren't putting us to sleep, they were slaughtering us! I begged for someone to help. My own mother turned away from me. Sophie screamed and screamed for her sister, anyone, to do something. Imogen tried to get to me. I can remember her screaming at top of her lungs and being held back by one of the coven members. They screamed for someone to do something." She told him in a harsh voice with narrowed her eyes angrily at the memory as she gazed distantly past his shoulder and he frowned at her in sympathy as she snapped back to reality by looking him in the eye once more. "But no one did."

_Imogen screamed uselessly against the hand that was covering her mouth as she struggled to get out of the male warlocks grasp but he just held her tighter and tears streamed unabashed down her cheeks as she stared at her little sister helplessly. _

"_To be born, you must sacrifice. Do you have faith?" Bastiana asked the young blonde girl as though there had been no interruption and the girl looked nervously over at her mother before turning back to the elder. The blonde nodded her head in response as she obediently held out her hand for the blood sacrifice like she had been told to in practice the day before and Bastiana grasped a large knife in her hand before slitting the girls throat in one swift motion. _

_Time seemed to stop as everyone watched the body fall to the ground before the three remaining girls' began screaming in terror as they backed away from the knife wielding elder and three male warlocks quickly restrained them so they couldn't escape the fate that awaited them. _

_Sophie cried silently as she tried to break free of the strong arms pinning her down and she watched powerlessly as the next young witch was pushed forward by the man holding her. Bastiana slashed the girl's throat with an emotionless expression despite her sobs of protest and the dead corpse fell to the ground in a heap. _

"_No, no!" Davina shouted loudly in objection as tears poured down her cheeks unapologetically and she glanced over at her mother at the front of the group but saw that she was just staring straight ahead. The young witch frowned in slightly confusion as to why her own mother wasn't trying to help her and then looked over at her older sister who was sobbing as she tried uselessly to get out of the arms of the warlock restraining her. _

"_Monique Deveraux." Bastiana announced blankly as she held out her hand for the next girl and Sophie screamed loudly against the hand holding her as her niece was forced forward to be the next sacrificed. She slammed her elbow backwards into the warlock's stomach as she stomped on his foot and he let out a loud grunt of pain as stumbled back in surprise at the sudden assault. His hand fell from her mouth as she rushed forward out of his grasp before he could grab her again and she looked over at Jane-Anne with a frown as she ran towards her niece. _

"_What is wrong with you!?" Sophie shouted at her sister when she saw that she was doing nothing to stop the upcoming sacrifice and Jane-Anne looked worried at what was about to come but didn't move a muscle to help. _

"_Monique, run away! Run away!" Davina yelled at her best friend as she struggled against the man holding her and Monique whimpered in fright as she stared at Bastiana with wide eyes._

"And yet you survived. Therefore, someone or something intervened." Elijah stated carefully as he narrowed his eyes at the young witch in front of him and fiddled with the violin in his hand as he tried to keep himself separated from the situation.

"Yes. Someone finally did." Davina agreed as she gave a firm nod of her head with a tiny smile on her lips and Elijah pressed his lips into a tight line as he tilted his head to the side with outrage still shining in his brown eyes. "The vampire's interrupted the ritual. It was so loud. Everyone was screaming and all I could think about was getting to safety. Getting to Imogen. Every girl who died released her power on to the next. When I was the last one, I suddenly had all of it, all the power that was supposed to be released back into the earth to appease our ancestors."

_All the witches froze in shock as a shrill whistle echoed without the cemetery and they all turned to the back of the semi-circle to see a group of vampire's dropping down from the tops of mausoleums. A murmur of terror spread through the gathered witches as the vampire's infiltrated the old cemetery and Sophie gasped out loud at the sight of a dark skinned vampire leading the charge. _

"_Marcel." Sophie uttered to herself as she stared at the self-proclaimed king of New Orleans and watched in awe as the vampire began viciously killing the witches. _

_Imogen felt the swell of magic in her stomach as an electric current washed over her skin and she used the expanding magical energy to propel the man holding her backwards so that his grasp on her broke. As soon as she was free of his touch she rushed forward set on getting Davina away from both the witches and the vampires so that she wouldn't be in danger and paused when she saw a vampire standing behind Bastiana with his fangs lodged in her throat. _

_The vampire dropped the elders corpse onto the ground with a smirk on his lips and the mystical knife she had been holding fell down next to her as he rushed off help the other vampire's kill the remaining witches of the coven. Agnes rushed up the steps of the podium in a hurry as she crouched down to pick up the knife at her old friends side and stood back up straight as she grabbed Monique's arm before slashing her throat. _

"_No, Monique! No! Let go of me!" Davina screamed hysterically as the blood spurted everywhere and she stared down at her best friend's corpse as she felt the hands holding her tighten around her. "Stop it! Stop it! Let go of me! Stop it!"_

_Davina screamed in frustration as she struggled against the man restraining her and she flung her head backwards so that it collided with the man's nose. He groaned in pain as he let go of her and she used his distraction to run off of the podium as fast as she could before he recovered enough to grab her again. _

_Imogen looked up to see her little sister running towards her with tears streaming down her cheeks as she sobbed uncontrollably and her heart broke into a million pieces as she rushed forward to meet Davina in the middle. _

"_I got you. I got you, babe." Imogen promised in a whisper as she wrapped her arms tightly around the younger girls shoulders and Davina buried her head into her sister's shoulder as she cried with reckless abandoned for the loss of her friends. "No one's going to hurt you. I promise, Pixie. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you." _

"_Don't make promises you can't keep, Imogen." A familiar voice warned her emotionlessly from in front of the duo and they both look to see a middle aged woman with greying brunette hair glaring at them from a few feet away. Imogen glowered at the woman as she blindly pushed Davina behind her protectively and tried to block the younger girl's view of the woman. _

"_This is one promise I intend to keep, mother." _

"_You should have stayed away. Davina is better off without you in her life." Victoria Claire spat at her eldest daughter venomously as she took a step closer and Davina gripped her sister's arm as she stared in horror at her mother because she couldn't believe that the woman who gave life to them was saying such horrible things. _

"_What little life you have planned for her!" Imogen shouted angrily as she dragged the younger girl back a step as their mother advanced and Victoria held her hand out in front of her body with a smirk on her lips as she felt her magical energy swelling in the pit of her stomach. _

_Imogen screamed out in pain as her entire body suddenly felt like it was on fire and her muscles tensed as her legs gave out before she fell to her knees on the ground. Her blood was boiling as she cringed against the feeling of someone slamming a needle repeatedly into her skull and she whimpered as she struggled to open her eyes to glare at the woman she called mother. "Davina, run!" _

"_No! No, no. Please, Imogen." Davina begged her sister with fresh tears running down her cheeks as she gaped at her sister's sprawled figure and dropped down on to her knees next to her as she ran a hand through her brunette hair. _

"_Run, Davina! Run!" the older girl ordered sternly as she gritted her teeth in agony and Davina glanced up at their mother who was looking down at Imogen with emotionless eyes before standing up on her trembling legs with a determined expression. _

_Imogen clenched her teeth together as she pushed herself up onto her feet slowly under the pressure of her mother's magic and glared through narrowed bluish eyes at her mother as she used her remaining strength to inflate the magic that was waiting for her to utilize. Her legs wobbled slightly when she took a step closer to her woman harming her and smirked at the surprised expression on the older woman's face as she raised her hand out in front of her body. _

_Victoria's face contorted in pain as she was bombarded with a wave of intense agony and she struggled to keep a hold of her magic as her knees buckled underneath her. She involuntarily hissed as she fell to her knees on the ground and any control over her magic was loss as her chest tightened with the loss of oxygen. _

_Imogen's pulled her hand into a fist as she planted the mental image of her mother choking on air in her mind and she blinked back tears as she stared into Victoria's impassive eyes. _

"_What's happening?" Davina whispered in shock as she watched with wide eyes and her mother's face began to turn a shade of blue as she struggled to breath. _

"_I always keep my promises. No one will hurt Davina." Imogen said firmly to her mother as she glared heatedly at the woman who had made her life a living hell for the 22 years in had been alive and she abruptly turned her fist to the left as Victoria's neck snapped in the same direction with an audible crack. _

_The two sisters stared at the corpse of their mother in front of them as Victoria's lifeless eyes gazed back at them and Davina whimpered slightly as she grasped Imogen's hand in hers for comfort. "We have to go, Pixie. Come on." _

_Imogen squeezed the younger girls hand once reassuringly as she began leading her away from the still fighting witches and vampire's with the sole purpose of getting Davina to safety. _

_Marcel watched the young brunette witches that looked so similar that they must have been sisters with a thoughtful expression as they started running away from the massacre taking place and he couldn't help but be impressed with the fire that they both possessed. The older of the girls practically dragged the other girl by the hand as they dodged around the vampire's attacking various witches without batting an eyelash and he shook his head in wonder with a small smile on his handsome face. He saw a blonde warlock step into the girls' path as they jerked to a stop and a growl escaped Marcel as a protective ache spread through his chest. _

"_Going somewhere, sweet pea?" a familiar male voice asked tauntingly from in front of the two sisters as they came to a stop and Imogen visibly flinched at the sound of his voice as she glanced up at the handsome blonde haired man in his late twenties when he blocked their path with a smirk. _

"_Johnathan…" Imogen murmured in distaste as she pushed Davina behind her protectively and glared at her ex-boyfriend with hatred shining in her bluish eyes as he took a step closer to the pair. _

"_You know you're no match for me, Imogen. Just hand over the girl and be on your way." Johnathon ordered sternly as he held out his hand as though she was just going to comply with his wishes and narrowed his green eyes at her as she shook her head at the request. _

"_Over my dead body." she hissed at him menacingly as she tightened her hold on her sister wrist as though to reassure herself that she was really there and he smiled back at her with a sinister look in his eyes as he stepped closer to her. _

"_That could be arranged." _

_Before he could make a move against her in any way, a fast moving blur grabbed onto his shoulder and yanked him backwards as they lodged their teeth into his throat. Jonathon screamed out in horror as he closed his eyes in pain and Imogen stared at him with a shocked expression as a sick sense of relief filled her stomach now that he wouldn't be around to hurt her anymore or anyone else in the future. _

_Marcel carelessly threw the body of the warlock to the ground once all the blood was gone as he wiped his mouth with one hand and glowered at the corpse at his feet for a second before risking a glance up at the sisters almost nervously. _

_The dark skinned vampire standing over Johnathon's deceased body looked up with a small frown playing at the edges of his blood smeared lips and Imogen immediately recognised him as the vampire king Marcel who Sophie had been fooling around with the last few months. _

"_Thank you." Imogen said to him sincerely as she pulled Davina closer to her side protectively and Marcel looked up in surprise at her words as she stared at him with such honestly in her eyes that he had to believe her. He nodded at her once as he glanced down at the body at his feet in disgust and Davina gasped in shock when a loud scream echoed through the cemetery. The younger witch immediately stepped closer to the vampire because she had the feeling that he was more trustworthy than the witches at the moment and Imogen gently held her hand as she looked around the cemetery for any threats. _

"_I got you." Marcel assured them both softly as he wrapped an arm around the younger brunette's waist and she gripped onto his jacket tightly as she cried silently while her sister squeezed her hand lovingly. _

_Sophie sobbed recklessly as she held her nieces body on her lap and rocked back and forth on her knees as she soothed Monique's black hair back from her face. A golden light began glowing from her teenager's hand as Sophie looked up in surprise at the sudden brightness and she frowned in confusion as the light seemed to travel down her arm to her hand. _

_The light leaked out of Monique's skin as Davina held out her hand on the other side of the cemetery and the light seemed to dance across the space in between them before going into the brunette's outstretched hand while Sophie, Marcel and Imogen stared in amazement. _

"_Oh, my god." Imogen whispered in realisation as she covered her mouth with one hand and glanced over at her best friend's shocked expression before pursing her lips determinedly. Sophie would do everything in her power to complete the ritual now that she had some form of proof so that Monique could be resurrected and Imogen wasn't going to just hand Davina over to be slaughter as part of some stupid ritual. She turned to the dark skinned vampire next to her as she pulled Davina tighter against her side and Marcel looked down at her with a frown on his handsome as Imogen gripped his hand in hers. "Take her." _

"_What?" Davina asked in shock as she turned to face her sister with wide eyes and Imogen glanced at her quickly before turning back to Marcel with a pleading look on her face. _

"_You need to keep her safe from the witches. If they kill her as part of the Harvest they'll have more power and I know that you don't want that. Protect Davina." _

_Marcel stared at the gorgeous brunette standing in front of him with pleading bluish eyes as she held his hand in both of hers and he felt a fluttering in his chest as he looked over at the younger girl tenderly before he nodded in agreement. _

"_I'll protect her." He promised them both softly as he looked back over at Imogen with intense dark brown eyes and Imogen blinked back tears as she nodded at him before turning to her younger sister. Marcel stepped back a little to give them a sort of privacy but stayed close enough that he could grab them easily if he needed to get them out of danger. _

"_Imogen…" Davina whispered helplessly as her lower lip trembled slightly and she blinked back more tears threatened to fall as she wrapped her arms around her sister's waist. _

"_I love you, Pixie." Imogen uttered into her sister brunette hair as she embraced the younger girl warmly and she sighed heavily as she pulled back while pressing a kiss to Davina's temple. _

"_We gotta go." Marcel interrupted the pair regretfully as he stepped forward and Imogen offered him a small smile as she gave her sister a gentle push in his direction. Davina looked at her sister longingly as she allowed the handsome vampire to wrap his arms around her and Imogen gave her a reassuring smile as she blinked back tears._

"So... the Harvest was actually working?" he asked her curiously with a frown playing on his lips as he leaned back in his seat and Davina quirked an eyebrow at him as she clasped her hands in front of her to stop them from lashing out at the frightening memory.

"Something was working. And I knew that I was supposed to be killed so the Harvest could be completed and we would all be resurrected. But, they lied to us about how they were killing us. How do I know they weren't lying to us about coming back?" she asked him rhetorically as she gazed off into the distance for a moment before turning her back to him with a small smile on her lips and she swallowed back the bile in her throat as she blinked away the fresh tears in her bluish eyes. "But mostly, I just didn't want to die. So, I let him save me. Marcel saved my life."

Davina held his gaze almost defiantly as she drew tiny circles on her thigh to distract herself from the guilt she still felt in her stomach at lying to Marcel and made herself look away from his powerful brown eyes that were studying her with such compassion. She didn't want anyone's pity over her situation because no matter what happened to her in the past or in the future Davina had been learned how to be strong and resilient.

"You may return this now to its rightful owner. It's restored." Elijah told her as he held up the newly restored violin in his hands and Davina gracefully stood up from the end of the bed as she frowned sadly at the instrument in his hand.

"I don't even know if I'll see him again." The young witch murmured woefully as she carefully took the wooden violin from his hands and sighed unhappily as she thought of the last time she had seen the owner of the instrument.

Davina felt a spark of electricity in her stomach as she shuddered under the intense shock that flooded her body and suddenly the whole room began shaking slightly as though there was an earthquake taking place. Both of the people occupying the room looked around wildly with worried expressions as the closed suitcase shook straight off the bed and Davina whimpered slightly in anxiety as she closed her eyes tightly while trying to push back the magical energy that was overflowing throughout her body. The window shutters burst open abruptly as the shaking stopped and Davina sighed in relief as her shoulder slumped under the pressure she was carrying on her shoulders.

Elijah's shocked expression turned to one of compassion as he looked over at the teenage witch across the room and saw the terrified look on her pretty face as she exhaled loudly in relief.

"Davina, this power that you contain, drawn from your fallen friends—it's too much for you. You need control, which requires study and practice. Now, my mother was a very powerful witch. She left behind her grimoires, a legacy of books filled with spells. These books contain all of the tools that you might need to control your magic. If you free me from here, I can share them with you. However, if you leave now with Marcel, we'll never see each other again, and I cannot find you, and I can't help you." He told her genuinely as he took a few steps closer to her with a sincere pleading in his brown eyes and Davina turned her head to look at him in shock as she blinked at him in surprise because even Marcel didn't tried to help her learn how to control her powers.

"The witches manipulated me. You know how that ended." She said to him quietly with an unmistakable warning in her voice as she stared at him with an almost desperate look in her bluish eyes and he shook his head slightly as he held up a hand in surrender.

"This is not manipulation. This is one thing in exchange for another. I'm offering you a deal."

* * *

Imogen was stood outside St Ann's church in the bright sun shine as she waited impatiently for Marcel to meet her because he had called an hour earlier to ask her to show up at the church so that they could relocate Davina to a new safe house. She glanced at the watch on her right wrist as she sighed to herself and leaned against the brick wall of the church as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Come on, pretty girl. We gotta go." Marcel announced suddenly from in front of her as she jumped in surprise at his abrupt entrance and nodded at him as he grabbed her hand before pulling her into the empty church. He quickly lead her down the middle of the aisle as she struggled to keep up with his brisk pace but didn't say anything because she knew that time was of the essence and she didn't want to be the reason Davina wasn't safe.

Marcel tightened his hold on Imogen's hand as he lead her up the narrow staircase that lead to the attic of the church and said a silently pray that they weren't too late to move the younger witch to a save house. He pushed open the door to the attic with a smile so that he wouldn't alarm Davina but inside he was a worried mess and he didn't want her to get overwhelmed if she thought that he or Imogen were in danger from the Originals because he knew that her magic was slightly unbalanced from the extra Harvest energy.

"Imogen, Marcel." Davina greeted them excitedly as she zipped up the suitcase on her bed with a smile and Imogen grinned back at her as she walked over to give her younger sister a tight hug in greeting since she hadn't been able to in the last eight months.

"Okay, now's our shot. You ready to blow this joint?" Marcel asked her as he grinned warmly at the two brunettes' in front of him and Davina nodded rapidly in answer as Imogen allowed her to move out of the embrace.

"Can't wait." She replied with a smile as she slipped her arm through Imogen's familiarly and Marcel chuckled at her as he walked across the room to grab her suitcase from the bed.

"We'll leave Elijah behind as a parting gift. Might buy me a little forgiveness for pulling one over on his siblings." He said to himself with a slight frown as he glanced over at the coffin on the other side of the room before heading for the door to the attic and Imogen squeezed her sister's arm reassuringly as they followed the dark skinned vampire.

Davina paused in the doorway of the attic as she turned back to face the room that she had been living in for the last eight months and looked around at the small safe haven that had kept her hidden from the witches.

"Come on, Pixie." Imogen murmured quietly as she kissed the younger girl's temple lovingly and Davina smiled softly at the familiar gesture from her sister as she nodded her head once in agreement.

The two sisters met up with Marcel at the bottom of the staircase as he looked up at them with a small smile playing on his lips and they smiled back at him as he gestured with his hand for them to go in front of him. Imogen tightened her hold on the younger girl's hand as she ushered her forward behind the dark skinned vampire and Davina bit her lip nervously as she glanced up at her sister's beautiful face indecisively for a moment before coming to a verdict.

Davina came to an abrupt halt in the middle of the aisle as she plastered a frown on to face and Imogen was pulled to a stop next to her with an anxious expression as she placed a hand on the younger girls shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Marcel asked her in a worried voice as he walked up behind them with a frown etched onto his handsome face and Imogen looked over at him with a confused frown as she shook her head in answer to his question.

"What's happening?" Imogen asked her sister softly as she brushed the younger girl's brunette hair out of her eyes just as the whole church began to shake slightly and they all looked around the room wildly with matching panicked expressions.

"I don't know. Something's wrong." Davina answered her quietly in a whisper as she shook her head slowly and she let out a small gasp as her body tensed under her sister's hold. Marcel ran to her other side as she whimpered slightly and her hands began to tremble as she held them up in front of her with a frightened look on her face. "Marcel. There's something dangerous out there. Take me back!"

"Davina!" Imogen cried out in panic as the younger girl's bluish eyes rolled back into her head and was about to collapse onto the church floor but Marcel quickly caught her in his arms.

"Damn it." The vampire growled under his breath as he picked Davina up in his muscular arms before walking towards the stairs and Imogen quickly trailed after them so that she could be with her younger sister when she needed her.

Marcel gently laid the young witch down on her bed in the attic as she shifted in her sleep and he smiled fondly at her innocent expression as he brushed a strand of brunette hair out of her face. Her eyes flickered like she was dreaming as he tucked the blankets under her shoulders and slowly backed away from the side of the bed as she rolled over onto her side with a soft murmur.

"You're good with her." Imogen whispered from behind him as he stood up straight and he turned around to see her leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest as she smiled at the sleeping girl on the bed.

"She's too much like her sister. Stubborn." He told her teasingly as he walked towards her with a small smile on his handsome face and she smiled at him sarcastically as she pushed herself off of the doorframe.

"I'm going to stay here, if that's okay."

"Sure. Just be careful. I'll have a guy outside the church as a precaution." Marcel said to her softly as he stopped next to her with a knowing smile playing on his lips and she quirked an eyebrow at the smug look in his dark brown eyes. "Don't try and duck them."

"Oh, no one likes a gloater." She replied in mock outrage as she glowered at him and he winked at her with a charming grin as he strolled out the door of the attic.

Imogen chuckled softly at his retreating back as she bit down lightly on her lower lip and shook her head at her own mixed up priorities as she walked over to the side of Davina's bed in the middle of the attic bedroom. She crouched down next to the bed as she tilted her head to the side and smiled softly at the pure innocence radiating off of the sleeping girl even though she knew that underneath the childlike demeanour was the heart of a warrior princess just waiting to break free.

Davina felt someone gently sweeping her hair off of her face as she pretended to sleep and she slowly opened her eyes to see Imogen kneeling next to the bed with a small smile on her pretty face.

"Hi." The younger witch murmured sleepily with a smile on her lips as she lifted her head off of the pillow and Imogen quirked an eyebrow at her sister with a hard edge in her bluish eyes as her gaze searched Davina face for something.

"You really need to stop scaring the life out of me, kid. I'm going to have wrinkles by twenty five, grey hair by thirty and a heart attack at thirty five." Imogen scolded her gently as she rocked back on her heels and slowly stood up from her crouch as Davina blushed sheepishly.

"I'm sorry but I needed to stay here." Davina informed her apologetically as she sat up in the bed and glanced over at her sister's confused expression as she sighed slightly. She knew that Imogen was going to have an opinion on what had transpired today between the Original and herself but she didn't want to face the disapproval on her sister's face if she didn't agree and she took a deep breath as she looked around the attic. "Elijah?"

A confused expression was etched into Imogen's face as she stared incomprehensibly at her younger sister for a moment before she looked around the room for any sign of the only living Original she hadn't met yet and wondered why Davina had been conversing with the powerful vampire.

"I'm pleased you stayed." A melodic male voice said from behind her as she stood protectively in front of her little sister and Imogen slowly turned away to see the extremely handsome man in his late twenties with intense hazel brown eyes, short brown hair, high cheekbones, a strong jawline, and a straight nose.

Elijah tilted his head to the side slightly as he regarded the young woman standing protectively in front of Davina and he knew instinctively that this must have been the older sister the young witch had mention during the day. She was a beautiful young woman in her early twenties with wavy brunette hair just past her shoulders, she had blue-green eyes with darkened eye lashes, rosy cheeks, full lips and a lightly tanned skin like her sister.

"Elijah Mikaelson. The only Original I haven't yet had the pleasure of meeting." The young woman said conversationally with a slight edge in her voice as she stayed in between the Original and the younger witch and Elijah smirked a little at her as he placed his hands in his pants pockets. "I'm Imogen Claire."

"I see my siblings have made quite the impression. It's a pleasure, Miss Claire." Elijah greeted her politely as he stepped forward to grab her hand gently and brought it to his lips to press a searing kiss to the top of her hand.

Imogen ignored the fluttering in her stomach as she kept her bluish gaze locked on his brown eyes and pressed her lips into a straight line to stop a shy smile from creeping across her lips at his old-fashioned greeting. Something inside her was urging her to step forward into his arms but another part of her was screaming at her to run for the hills and she wasn't completely sure which part of her was correct.

Davina stood up from the bed as she glanced between the Original and her sister with a suspicious look in her bluish eyes and slipped her hand into Imogen's to give herself some more courage as she faced the brown eyes vampire.

"You'll keep your promise about your mother's spell book?" Davina asked him doubtfully as she narrowed her eyes at him and Imogen felt her eyes widen in surprise as she glanced between the two of them.

"The Original witch? You're giving her the Original witch's grimore?" Imogen asked him in shock as she squeezed her sister's hand supportively and Davina looked at her in surprise because she hadn't realised that it was so famous.

"I will." Elijah told the two sister's with a soft smile as he saw their matching blue eyes light up with the mention of learning something new and he watched in interest as Davina grinned happily up at her older sister while Imogen squeezed her hand affectionately. This was how siblings were meant to behaviour in his opinion and he couldn't help but feel jealous that his family was no longer close like the two witches in front of him. "You know, difficulties aside, I value my family above everything. I am sorry that yours failed you both."

"We have each other. That will always be enough." The older brunette informed him passionately as she wrapped her arm around her sister's waist tenderly and Davina nodded in agreement as she rested her head on Imogen's shoulder.

"Your brother Klaus handed you to Marcel in a box, yet you still don't give up on him?" Davina asked him curiously as a small frown puckered at her lips and he sighed slightly in resign as he tore his gaze away from the girls.

"Well, I've given up on giving up. It's an affliction. I will fight for my family until my last breath." Elijah assured them quietly in defeat as he swept his eyes around the attic room and Imogen hummed in acknowledgement to his declaration.

"And I'll fight the witches until mind. I'll fight against anyone who threatens my family." Imogen professed fervently as she locked gazes with him and he could see the absolute certainty in her bluish eyes as he lost himself in the complexity of her gaze because for someone so young she seemed to have a wisdom that many nothing reached.

"If you'll excuse me, I really must be going to see my family." Elijah said to the two girls calmly as he fixed his suit jackets cufflinks and Davina nodded in understanding as she offered him a small smile before untangling herself from her sister's embrace.

"I have to be going anyway. I'll walk down with you." Imogen told him with a pointed look in his direction as she wrapped her arms around her sister tightly and Elijah quirked an eyebrow at her but didn't say anything as he moved to stand by the attic door while they finished saying goodbye.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" Davina asked imploringly as she slipped her hands into her sister's with a small smile on her lips and Imogen smiled at her warmly as she squeezed her hands reassuringly.

"I promise, Pixie. I love you."

"Okay. I love you too." The younger witch murmured as she wrapped her arms around her sister's thin waist and buried her head into her shoulder as she breathed in her familiar scent.

Imogen sent her sister one more small smile before walking out of the attic door with Elijah following after her with a bemused expression on his handsome face and she tried to ignore the feeling of butterflies in her stomach because she knew that he was looking at her.

"Davina is my whole life." Imogen stated abruptly as she turned around to face him with a honest expression on her gorgeous face and Elijah quirked an eyebrow at her as she stepped forward so that there was only a few inches of space between them. "If anything were to happen to her, I honestly don't know what I would do with myself. You're an older sibling so you know what it's like. You have to worry about two people but my whole focus is solely on Davina."

"You're commitment is admirable." Elijah told her honestly as he looked into her bluish eyes that were flashing with fierce loyalty for her sister and he couldn't help but be impressed by her selflessness and devotion.

"No, it's not. It's just what it is. The sky is blue, the grass is green and Imogen loves Davina." The witch declared softly with such love in her voice that it nearly made him take a step back out of pure shock and he tilted his head to the side as he studied her earnest expression.

Elijah caught sight of a black mark on her right wrist as she tucked a strand of brunette hair behind her hair and he frowned slightly as he reached forward to grasp her thin wrist in his hand. Imogen froze in shock as her eyes widened and Elijah gently ran his thumb over the words that were inked from her wrist to her elbow on her delicate skin as she shivered under his touch.

W_**alked Through Hell With A Smile**_

"'Walked through hell with a smile'? I take it there's a meaning behind this?" He asked her quietly as he traced the words with his finger gently and Imogen gently pulled her arm out of his reach as she gazed into his brown eyes with a soft smile.

"There's a meaning behind everything, Elijah." Imogen replied easily with a small smile as she turned on her heel and began walking down the stairs that lead to the church as Elijah looked after her with a thoughtful expression on his handsome face.


	5. Fruit of the Poisoned Tree

_**A Poison Tree**_

_I was angry with my friend:_

_I told my wrath, my wrath did end._

_I was angry with my foe:_

_I told it not, my wrath did grow._

_And I watered it in fears,_

_Night and morning with my tears;_

_And I sunned it with smiles,_

_And with soft deceitful wiles._

_And it grew both day and night,_

_Till it bore an apple bright._

_And my foe beheld it shine._

_And he knew that it was mine,_

_And into my garden stole_

_When the night had veiled the pole;_

_In the morning glad I see_

_My foe outstretched beneath the tree. _

_- William Blake_

**Bring Me To Life**

**Fruit of the Poisoned Tree:**

The only sound in the Mikaelson Mansion was the soothing tune of Bach's Concerto for Violin in E Major echoing throughout the cavernous house as Rebekah Mikaelson walked down the stairs from the second floor and her stiletto heels tapped loudly on the tiled flooring in contrast to the calming melody of the violin.

Back in the early 19th century, the mansion the Original's now resided in had been called home to the governor of New Orleans with whom the Mikaelson family had an understanding regarding their presence in the Louisianan city. The Governor had often thrown lavish parties in honour of the Mikaelson's in the ballroom of the mansion and had kept their true nature a secret from the general population in exchange for gold.

The blonde Original female froze in her steps at the bottom of the staircase with a frown etched on her pretty face as she looked at the slightly domestic scene in front of her and walked a few paces forward to stand in the doorway of the downstairs sitting room.

Niklaus sat on a red armchair at one side of the living room with an old book in his hands as he rested one elbow on the arm of the chair with his knuckles under his chin and Elijah relaxed on the couch opposite his younger brother while reading through one of the Original witch's ancient grimoires.

In the middle of the living on the vintage coffee table was the corpse of a young woman with pale skin, ink black hair and her eyes closed almost peacefully with her hands folded gently over her stomach much like how bodies were posed at a funeral parlour.

"So, this is what you do the first time we're back together as a family? Vampire book club?" Rebekah asked her older brother's mockingly as she placed her hands on her hips and quirked a pale eyebrow at them as she stopped to stare at them incredulously.

"Reading edifies the mind, sister." Niklaus replied to her absently without looking up from the poetry book in his hands and glanced up at his older brother with a smirk on his lips as his light blue eyes twinkled with mirth. "Isn't that right, Elijah?"

"Yes, that's quite right, Niklaus." Elijah agreed smoothly as he lifted his head from the grimoire he was reading to look at his younger sister with a faint smile on his lips and Klaus hid a small smile as he heard his sister grumble in the back of her throat at his answer.

"And what's this business?" Rebekah asked them haughtily as she wrinkled her nose slightly in disgust and gestured with her hand at the dead girl lying lifeless on the coffee table in the middle of the room.

"This is a..." the eldest Mikaelson began to explain to her as he looked at the corpse and used one hand to motion to the girl as he searched for the right word to describe the situation before them. "...peace offering."

"I presumed, after so much time desiccating in a coffin, that my big brother might be a bit peckish." Klaus explained in a false innocent voice as he shrugged his shoulders slightly at the accusation behind his older brother's words and Elijah internally rolled his eyes at the statement as he looked back down at the grimoire in his hands.

"And I explained to my little brother, that forgiveness cannot be bought. I'd simply prefer to see a change in behaviour that indicates contrition, and personal growth." He bit out in a mock politeness as he tightened his grip on the ancient book to keep himself from taking his annoyance out on his younger brother and Klaus rolled his light blue eyes guilty as Elijah gestured with one hand dismissively at the corpse. "Not this nonsense."

"Well, I couldn't very well let her go to waste, could I?"

"Well, I suppose I'll go fetch the rubbish bin, because she's staining a two hundred-year-old carpet." Rebekah snapped at her brother's with an annoyed frown as she waved an arm wildly at the corpse lying on the coffee table over the vintage rug and Elijah furrowed his eyebrows as he looked up from the grimoire before following his sister's gesture to see scarlet red blood dripping carelessly on the floor.

"Ah, yes." He muttered in acknowledgement to her comment as he frowned at the puddle of scarlet red blood leaking onto the carpet and went back to reading the grimoire in his hands as Rebekah sighed heavily before stalking out of the living room in a huff.

Klaus glanced at his younger sister's retreating back as she entered the kitchen and bit back a grin at her agitation as he shared a quick look with Elijah before going back to reading his poetry book without saying a word. As much as it pained him to admit to himself let alone out loud to another person, he was enjoying the peaceful moment with his older brother even though he could practically see the waves of bitter distress coming from Elijah. His older brother did have some right to feel dismayed by the fact that Niklaus had once again plunged a dagger into his heart when all he was trying to do was strengthen their bond as a family and even Klaus could admit that it was a bit dramatic of him to dagger Elijah all those months ago.

The soft sound of footsteps approaching the living room from the staircase made Elijah glanced up from his grimoire in his hands just as Hayley strolled into the room with her hand resting gently on her barely visible pregnant stomach.

Hayley Marshall was a beautiful werewolf with light olive toned skin, memorizing hazel green eyes and dark brown hair with fell wildly to her shoulders. The last three months, she had been living in New Orleans under the protection of the Original family based solely on the fact that she was carrying Niklaus' hybrid child. The pregnancy was not something Hayley had planned by any means and even though she wasn't very enthusiastic about the prospect at first, once she had learned via a witch that she was carrying a little girl something changed for her. Family wasn't something that she had much, or any of, and the thought of being a mother gave her a sense of stability, eagerness and affection just at the mere thought of her future daughter.

After Hayley triggered the werewolf gene at thirteen when she was drunk on a boating trip by accidently killing a friend of a friend, she transformed for the first time in her adoptive parent's living room and after wreaking havoc in their house they kicked her out onto the street. She had been living on her own since then and had occasionally joined up with wolf packs all over the country but she never stayed long in one place.

As she passed through the room, Hayley glanced subtly over to where the older Mikaelson was sitting as she ignored the fluttering in her stomach when she saw his dark brown gaze already on her and she quickly ducked her to hide the shy smile that crossed her lips. The werewolf hated that with one smouldering look Elijah Mikaelson could turn her into one of those snivelling teenage girls that giggle and melt at the sight of their crush but still she couldn't help the silly butterflies that he caused her.

Elijah watched from the corner of his eye as Hayley strolled casually into the kitchen adjoining the living room and marvelled silently at how well she seemed to be adjusting to her current position. He knew that spending time with his sibling was a challenge to begin with so the fact that Hayley had survived the three months he had been indisposed was a miracle in and of itself. It wasn't a secret that Niklaus was often short tempered and volatile while Rebekah was erratic and spiteful but nonetheless, Elijah loved his siblings more than anything or anyone else on the planet and had always placed them above his own happiness which had often left him with the choice between family and romantic partners.

Klaus glanced up from his book when he heard the soft thump of something hitting the table and saw Elijah carefully placing the ancient grimoire down as he stood up from his armchair gracefully. Elijah's gaze was focused on something across the room as he straightened his suits sleeves and Klaus narrowed his light blue eyes warily as he followed his older brother's line of sight over to the she-wolf passing through the living room. He pursed his lips in slight annoyance as he watched Elijah pathetically follow the werewolf out of the room and tried to ignore the growing suspicion that something was going on between the two of them because he simply wasn't ready to face the obvious fact.

Standing in the doorway to the spacious kitchen, Elijah watched in amusement as Hayley rifled through the refrigerator with growing agitation when she couldn't find what she was looking for. She was shaking her head slightly as she furrowed her eyebrows in frustration and muttered under her breath so quietly that he couldn't hear the words even with his superior Original vampire hearing.

"Good morning." Elijah greeted the beautiful werewolf with a small smile playing on his lips as he leaned his shoulder on the doorframe and Hayley jumped slightly in surprise at the sudden interruption as she slowly stood up straighter in front of the fridge. The eldest Mikaelson frowned in concern when he heard to her heartbeat increase because he was worried that stress wouldn't be good for the baby and he made a note not to scare her anymore just in case.

Hayley closed her eyes tightly as she mentally scolded herself when her heart rate picked up slightly at just the sound of his voice and took a deep breath to calm herself down before plastering a smile on her lips. She slowly turned around to face Elijah as she closed the fridge room and walked over to kitchen counter as she subtly took in his handsome form.

"Hey." she replied with a small smile on her lips as she placed her hands on the bench and Elijah pushed himself off of the doorframe as he strolled further into the kitchen with his hands in his suit pants pockets.

Rebekah entered the kitchen through the back door as she dragged a trashcan behind her with a scowl etched on her pretty face and she glanced up to glare at her older brother accusingly as he hid a sheepish smile. "Listen, I know I'm the only one in this house that actually drinks milk, but would it kill any of you to make sure it's on the grocery list?"

"Speaking of, add bleach." Rebekah spat out venomously as she threw one last look at her brother before stomping through the kitchen towards the living room and Hayley bit back an amusement smile at her retreating back.

Elijah smile faintly at his little sister's temper as he moved over to the kitchen cabinets behind the counter and glanced back over at the werewolf watching him curiously as he searching through the overhead cabinet. "You know, I do hope my siblings were hospitable to you, in my absence."

"In your absence, as you like to call it, which is a way-too-polite way of saying that your brother put a dagger in your heart..." Hayley answered him with a slight bitter note in her voice as she looked up at him through hazel green eyes and saw him fighting a smile at her words as he brought a bowl, spoon and box of cereal to the counter. "I have been attacked by French Quarter vampires, I've had to live in a house with a secret dungeon full of coffins, and I was nearly murdered by witches who are convinced my baby is Lucifer."

Listening to her rant about what had happened while he was daggered brought a sympathetic smile to Elijah's lips as he placed the item's he was carrying down on the bench and turned to the fridge to pull out the orange juice and milk that was hidden behind some blood bags. He walked back over to the counter as Hayley poured some cereal into the bowl and he lifted the milk carton to pour some into her bowl as she looked up at him in shock. "Oh...milk. They've been fine. Your siblings are weirdly protective, I know I have you to thank for that."

"I'm just happy to see that you're in one piece." He told her sincerely with a smile as he stepped back to give her room to eat without feeling crowded and she ducked her head to hide the slight blush on her cheeks as she smiled back at him. "So, back to the murderous witches. I have some concerns."

"They're evil. And, my life is still magically linked to Sophie Deveraux, which is not comforting." She muttered with a slight roll of her eyes as he handed her the bowl of cereal and she looked up at him with a small smile as she took the bowl from his hands.

"Yes, I think it's time we took care of that little problem."

"I am all for it. As soon as they're unlinked, we get to leave this crap town." Rebekah announced as she came back into the kitchen dragged the corpse from the living room behind her making a trail of blood on the floor and smiled gleefully with anticipation flashing in her cerulean blue eyes as she looked at her older brother. "Who do we have to kill?"

"…. Probably no one." Elijah said hesitantly after a moment of thought as he calculated the best course of action and Hayley looked at him with obvious scepticism as she continued to eat her breakfast. "Alright, potentially everyone."

Rebekah grinned manically at her older brother with bloodlust in her eyes as she strolled back through the kitchen just in time to the last of his sentence and Elijah smirked back at her as she walked into the living to clean up the mess left on the carpet by the dead human girl.

The music in the living room was still playing softly as the only Original female walked in with a bucket of water and other cleaning supplies as she cast a withering look at her older brother who was still sitting reading in the same armchair. Rebekah set the bucket down with a sigh as she climbed down to her knees on the carpet and started scrubbing at the bloodstains with vigour as she glanced at Klaus from the corner of her eye to see him reading 'A Poison Tree' by William Blake.

"Poetry about poisoned apples from dead trees. Looks like someone's worried about impending daddyhood." She taunted him with a mocking smirk on her lips as she ignore the jealous in her stomach over the fact that the brother that never then contemplated children was getting the one thing she wanted more anything else in the world.

"Nonsense. Elijah's back. In his presence, all problems turn to pixie-dust and float away!" Klaus replied nonchalantly without looking up from his book as he kept his face blank and disregarded the bitterness he could detect in his little sister's voice. He glanced up at Rebekah from the book with a grin as she looked up at him with a matching smile and he was instantly reminded of a time when the two of them were nearly inseparable.

"Strange, I don't recall any pixie-dust from the darkness of the coffin I was recently forced to endure." Elijah said loudly as he entered the living room from the parlour and Rebekah grimaced guiltily as she quickly stifled her smile like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

Elijah ignored the mock-innocent expressions on his younger siblings face as he strolled into the room and bit back a smile of his own at the familial scene before him as he picked up his mother's old grimoire before flipping through it for the right page.

"What are you doing with Mother's spell book?" Rebekah asked suddenly as she pushed herself up onto her knees with a confused frown and looked over at Elijah almost accusingly as she thought about her lost mother.

"Well, in exchange for my freedom, I promised the witch Davina that I would share a few pages from Mother's grimoire. To help her learn to control her magic. Plus, I'm sure the lovely Imogen might like the chance to practice some magic since she's removed herself from the local coven." Elijah replied absently as he continued to flip through the grimoire without looking up and he paused for a moment when he mentioned the fiercely protective witch he had met the day before.

"Imogen? How do you know Imogen?"

"I met her yesterday when I was talking to Davina."

"Davina?" the youngest Original asked questioningly as she stood up from the carpet gracefully and placed her hands on her hips as she quirked an eyebrow at her older brother.

"Really, Rebekah? You didn't catch the similarities between the two young witches?" Klaus asked teasingly as he closed his own book with a mocking smirk on his lips and Rebekah turned her head around to glare at him through narrowed eyes as she waved a hand for him to continue. "They're sisters."

"Hm. That's correct. From my understanding, Imogen has strayed from the local coven because of their interest in Davina and she intends to do whatever in her power to keep her sister safe from harm." Elijah informed them softly as he thought of the blue eyes brunette that had intrigued him with her passionate determination and unwavering loyalty to her younger sister in the face of danger. He could still see her bright blue eyes flashing with heated dedication as she spoke to him on the stairwell the previous day about her younger sister and the devotion that she presented without hesitation was something he could easily empathise with.

"That bitch. Although, she did say when we met that she would do anything to protect her family." Rebekah murmured thoughtfully to herself as she came to terms with the fact that her new friend was more a part of the supernatural community then she previously thought.

"If Imogen's loyalty isn't with Marcel, it may another chance to form a powerful alliance." Klaus uttered pensively as he leaned his chin on his hand with a considering expression on his face and Elijah glanced up with a scolded look as he came to a stop on the right page of the grimoire.

"Yes, well, I think Imogen's loyalty is solely with Davina." Elijah told his younger brother pointedly as he quirked an eyebrow at him but Klaus just waved a hand dismissively in the air as though that little detail was insignificant in his plans. "Anyway, I thought we'd begin with a little unlinking spell."

"Wait, you want to use her to unlink Hayley from Sophie Deveraux?" Rebekah asked in a stunned voice as she shared a confused look with the hybrid and then turned back to her oldest brother with a shocked expression.

"Sophie brought us here under false pretences! She doesn't just want us to take down Marcel and his minions, she wants to take Davina back. So, she yolked her own cause to ours, with magic threats and half-truths! Well, no more. As of now, our deal with Sophie Deveraux is null and void." Elijah declared passionately as he ripped the page he wanted out of the ancient grimoire carefully so that he didn't tear the paper and pursed his lips in annoyance as he looked up at his younger siblings.

Elijah Mikaelson may have been known as the moral one of the Original family and he prided himself on being a man of his word but he was also proficient at finding loopholes in the deals that he made. Every negotiation he proposed was carefully worded in a way that made it clear that is hasn't promised to do anything and he only broke his word when he came to the realisation that he had been lied to by the opposing party.

Klaus grinned manically at his older brother's words as he leaned forward in anticipation with bloodlust shining in his eyes and he looked up at his little sister to see the same expression on her pretty face as her eyes gleamed with maliciously.

"Niklaus, I need you to come with me. I need five minutes alone with Davina, you need to make certain that I am not interrupted." Elijah commanded sternly as he tucked the page from the grimoire into his pocket and then pointed a finger at Rebekah as she quirked an eyebrow at him questioningly. "You stay here and watch Hayley."

"I have plans with Imogen today! How did I get elected super-nanny?" Rebekah asked indignantly as Elijah started walking towards the doorway to the parlour while straightened his suit jacket and she pouted at his retreating back as he ignored her question.

"More importantly, who put him in charge?" Klaus asked quietly as he obediently followed his older brother out of the room while Rebekah sighed in defeat and looked off towards the stairs that lead to the second of the house where Hayley had disappeared to.

* * *

The sight of Davina silently sketching in the sunlight was something that Imogen was sure never to take for granted again and she made a mental to remind herself of that moment whenever she had doubts about aligning herself with the vampires. Nothing was more important to her than her little sister's safety and she had made her alliances quite clear to all those involved, Davina was the only person with her loyalty.

Lying on her stomach on Davina comfortable bed in the attic of the church as she watched her sister sketch with a piece of charcoal while she studied her behavioural psychology textbook was the first completely peaceful moment that Imogen had experienced since the Harvest and she finally let herself relax at least a little as she kept one eyes on the door in case of an intruder. Imogen had always been slightly cautious of the dangers surrounding her but she supposed that was merely a repercussion of her childhood experiences and had learned to embrace her paranoia so that she could use it to her advantage. One benefit of her totally awareness of her surrounding and the magically energy in her veins was that she could relax slightly when she was out in the city and still know which supernatural creatures were near her at any given time.

"This silence is driving me mad." Davina complained to her sister with a pout on her lips as she turned her head slightly to look at the older girl laying her bed with her ankles crossed in the air and one hand twirling a lock of her long brunette hair as she read her textbook for graduate school.

"You're already mad." Imogen replied absently without looking up from her book with a faint smile playing on the edge of her lips and Davina made an indignant noise in the back of her throat which caused her to look up at the younger witch with a grin. "_We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."_

"_Alice in Wonderland _by Lewis Carroll. You used to read that to me at bedtime." Davina said with a remising smile on her smile as she tilted her head to the side and Imogen chuckled softly as she nodded her head in acknowledgement.

"I thought it was a good way to teach you about individuality, justice and the power of imagination."

"It was." Davina agreed happily as she sat her charcoal down on the edge of her easel and slowly walked over to sit down on the side of her bed next to her sister with a small smile on her lips. There was something that the youngest Clare sister had been wondering about since the events of the Harvest but she hadn't been able to contact Imogen before and now she was hesitate to bring to it up in case it upset her sister in any way. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Pixie. What's up?" Imogen asked her with a mixture of concern and curiosity in her voice as she closed her text book so that she could give her little sister her full attention because there was something in the other girl's voice that was unsettling to her.

Davina looked down at the bed top as she played absently with a piece of frayed cotton on the quilt and Imogen grasped her hand in hers comfortingly as she brushed a strand of dark brown hair behind her ear with a frown etched on her face.

"Why did mother and father hate us?" Davina asked in a small voice as she looked up at her big sister with tears in her bluish eyes and Imogen felt her heart break into pieces at the shattered look in her baby sister's eyes because it just gave her another reason to hate her late parents.

Imogen had spent many years trying her hardest to keep her parent's attention away from their youngest daughter by acting out and rebelling just so that all of their focus was on her instead of innocent Davina. She wanted to keep Davina's view of reality as unadulterated as possible for as long as possible and that included keeping the truth about their parents from her.

From the age of six when Victoria had brought home her sweet baby sister, Imogen had made it her duty to protect and teach Davina the exact opposite of her parents so that one day she would grow up to be a kind-hearted, strong member of the community.

Victoria and Robert Clare were horrible people that never should have been allowed to be parents in Imogen's opinion and she was adamant in her belief that despite their genealogy, she and Davina were decent people just making the best of their situation.

"Oh, honey." Imogen muttered with a heavy sigh as she sat up to wrap her arms around the younger girl tightly and rested her chin on Davina's head as she buried her face in her shoulder comfortably. She knew that this conversation would one day have to take place but she had never really thought about what she would tell her younger sister and right then she was mentally hitting herself for not preparing better. "They didn't hate you, Davina. I know that they didn't act how normal parents should and I know that you deserve better than what they gave you but don't for a second think that they didn't love _you_. How could anyone not love you? It's pure nonsense."

"They didn't read to me at night, or tuck me into bed. They didn't come my school plays, or my soccer games. Mom didn't braid my hair like the other mom's did. You did all those things for me." the younger girl mumbled softly into Imogen's shoulder as she blinked back tears that threatened to fall from her eyes and sniffled slightly as she sat back up to look her sister in the eye with a steely resolve.

"I was glad to do all those things for you, Pixie."

"But you shouldn't have had to! You were only a child yourself."

"Davina." Imogen said sternly as she placed her hands firmly on her younger sister's shoulders and used one hand to gently lift her chin so that she was looking her sister right in the eye with a determined glint. "All those things that you just listed? I loved doing them for you. Nothing made me happier than being with you. Do you know what one of my favourite memories is?"

"No." the young witch said softly as she swallowed harshly against the lump in her throat and used her hand to wipe away one of the tears that had escaped her as she sniffled a little.

"You were four and I was ten. You had decided that it was a perfect day for a tea party, like the one in _Alice in Wonderland_. So, anyway, I made us tea and sandwiches and we set up a blanket in the backyard. About twenty minutes into the picnic, you saw a white rabbit across the garden and you got up from the blanket and took off across the yard to follow it. I had to run as fast as I could to catch you and you begged me to let you follow the white rabbit down the hole like Alice. I managed to convince you that only one person could go down the rabbit hole and you refused to go without me so you turned around and yelled at the rabbit for not letting me come with you." Imogen told her with a wistful smile as she played with the ends of Davina's brunette hair and Davina broke it out laughing at the end of the story as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I don't regret a second of our time together, Pixie."

"Me either." Davina agreed instantly as she gave her sister a slight smile with tears still in her eyes and she watched curiously as Imogen's blue eyes brightened with mischief as she climbed off of the bed quickly.

"Want to see something awesome?"

"Of course." the younger sister said enthusiastically as she nodded her head rapidly and Imogen chuckled at the eager expression on her sister's face as she bit her lower lip to keep from grinning too widely. She turned around so that her back was to her little sister as she slowly reached behind her to lift off her blouse with one shift motion and bit back a smile when Davina let out a small gasp from the bed. "Oh, my god."

On the side of Imogen's left hip was a small inked on tattoo of a black crumbled top hat with a small ticket reading 10/6, a banner wrapped around it and the words, _We're All Mad Here _scripted in black ink. It was a perfect image of the Mad Hatters top hat in _Alice in Wonderland _and Davina giggled in awe as she slid off of the bed to look at it more closely.

"Do you like it?" Imogen asked her sister nervously when she heard her giggling behind her and gasped slightly at the cold when Davina's finger gently traced the writing on her skin.

"Can I get one?" Davina asked excitedly as she ran her fingers over the picture with a grin and Imogen let out a breathy relieved laugh as she turned around to face her little sister with a quirked eyebrow. "So, can I get one?"

"When you're eighteen you can do whatever the hell you like. Until then…" the oldest Clare sister said as she placed her hands on her little sister's shoulders with a grin and smiled slightly as Davina pouted jokingly at her with a faint smile playing on her lips.

"Am I interrupting something?" a melodic familiar male voice asked hesitantly from the doorway of the attic and Imogen jerked in surprise as she spun around to face the intruder with a shocked expression because she hadn't heard anyone approaching.

Elijah was slightly shocked when he opened the door to Davina's attic bedroom and saw both Clare sister's standing in the middle of the room facing each other with smiles on their lips but the most surprising thing was that Imogen's shirt was currently lying on the ground at her feet so that she was only in a navy blue lace bra that showed off her toned stomach.

"Uh... No, not interrupting." Imogen assured him as she quickly turned around to grab her shirt from the floor and Elijah sucked in an unnecessary breath when he saw the tattoo on her lower back as his oak brown eyes darkened with lust. There was no point in him denying that Imogen Clare was an attractive young woman with her striking blue eyes, wavy brunette hair that hung at her shoulders and her athletically toned body with her simple tattoos on her tanned skin.

Imogen scrunched her nose up at Davina to convey her embarrassment when her back was turned to Elijah and the younger sister pressed her lips in a tight lip to stop from laughing at her predicament as Imogen slipped on her shirt back on.

"Elijah, what are you doing here?" Davina asked the handsome Original vampire curiously as she tried not to laugh but a bright smile still played on her lips and Imogen sighed in relief that the attention was off of her as she turned back around to face the door with a smile.

"I made you a promise." Elijah reminded the young witch with a smile as he pulled a folded piece of paper out of his inside suit pocket and held it up for her to see as he watched her pretty face light up with happiness at the sight of it.

"Come in!" she chirped happily with a grin as took the paper from his hands before she practically skipped over to her bed and sat down in the middle with her legs crossed as she unfolded the paper so that she could read the spell to had chosen to give her.

Imogen chuckled lightly at her sister's enthusiasm as she fondly watched her sit down on her bed and turned to face Elijah with a small smile on her lips as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She nodded her head for him to come into the attic as she walked over to sit down on the edge of the bed next to her sister and crossed her ankles as she waited for Elijah to get to the reason that he was here.

"It's a spell of unknotting?" Davina asked in confusion as her forehead scrunched up in concentration and she glanced up at Elijah for an explanation as the vampire strolled further into the attic to lean against the desk at the side of the room.

"This is a sanguinum knot. The witches use it as representational magic." Imogen explained to her sister with amusement in her voice as she leaned over her shoulder to see the spell and Davina looked at her with a small smile on her lips before turned back to the paper.

"If you can unknot this using that spell, you will have taken a step towards learning control. This is one of my mother's later spells. It requires much more power than you realize. Now, if you can perform this, then I shall return with another page." Elijah told her with a small quirk of his lips as he watched the two witches interact with one another and he shifted on his feet when Imogen looked up at him with a smile that conveyed just how much it meant to her that he had kept his promise to her sister. "A spell of your own choosing, next time."

"Thank you, Elijah." Davina said sincerely as she looked up at him with wide blue eyes so much like her sister but he could see the pure innocence in their depth that had been taken from Imogen's and found himself wanting to protect her from the dangers that awaited her outside the attic haven.

Imogen was slightly in awe of the powerful Original standing by the desk opposite them simply because of the fact that he had kept his word to her little sister and not many people in the world had in the past. Elijah had a presence that could not be denied and she was quickly finding herself in a position that she was not used to being in as she was feeling unsure of herself around him when she usually exuded confidence around the opposite sex. There was something irrefutably different than she was used to about the oldest Mikaelson that Imogen couldn't place a name on and that made her slightly insecure when she was in the same room with him especially when she knew that it was pointless to refute the fact that she was attracted to the man.

"You're very welcome, Davina." Elijah replied with a small smile on his lips as he straightened his suit jacket cuff and nodded his head at the younger witch as she beamed up at him before turning back to examine the spell in front of her.

"Crap." Imogen muttered quietly under her breath as she looked at the thin wrist watch she was wearing and gracefully stood up from the edge of the bed as Davina looked at her sister with confusion in her bluish eyes. "I've been here longer than I was planning on it. I have an assignment for my abnormal psychology class due in two days and I'm nowhere near finished. Sorry, Pixie."

"It's okay, Imogen. I have to study this spell anyway." Davina assured her with a dismissive wave of her hand as she smiled at her older sister and Imogen returned the gesture as she pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"I love you, honey."

"I love you, too."

Elijah subtly watched the sister's interaction with a growing sense of envy as he turned his head to the side to give them some semblance of privacy. He couldn't remember the last time that he had told one of his siblings that he loved them and that fact alone made him ashamed of himself when he had over a thousand years to perfect the art of being an older brother. This young woman in front of him was only in her early twenties and yet she had put everything she had into protecting her sister when he had failed so dismally to protect his brothers.

"'Bye, Elijah." Imogen's voice interrupted his thoughts about her as he turned his head to look at the witch's sincere bluish eyes and he found himself wanting to know more about loyal, protective young woman in front of him.

"Actually, I have to leave as well, I'll walk you out." Elijah told her softly as he offered her a small smile that made a blush creep onto her cheeks and she nodded once in agreement as she collected her things before pressing another kiss to her sister's cheek.

Imogen met Elijah gaze across the attic as she placed her textbook in her large handbag and begged the universe that her heartbeat would stay at a steady pace since she knew that the Original would easily hear it pattering in her chest.

The Original placed his hands in his suit pants pockets as he silently followed the young witch out of the attic room and faintly smiled to himself as Imogen glanced over her shoulder at him with a slightly confused glint in her bluish eyes. He heard her sigh under her breath as she turned her head back to the front so that she could see where she was going and continued to walk down the narrow staircase as she tucked a strand of long hair behind her ear.

"Okay.." she whispered to herself as she spun around to face him in the middle of the stairwell with a expressionless mask plastered on her pretty face and looked up at him from two steps below him as she tilted her head to the side slightly. "What's your angle, Elijah? What is it you want from Davina and me?"

Elijah's oak brown eyes swept over her face as though he was looking for an answer to a question and was a mixture of frustrated and amused by the fact that he couldn't solve the puzzle.

"Imogen…" he said softly as he stepped down on to the next stair so that they were only a further inches apart and she swallowed tensely at the sound of her name coming from his lips as she met his gaze unwaveringly with a flicker of defiance in their depth. "I am a man of my word. I just want my family protected. I don't know what I will need to do in the future but presently? I do not want anything from you or your sister."

The tension surrounding the pair was thick as they stared at each other as though they were both assessing how serious the other was and didn't want to be the first to back down from the contest as they searched each other's gaze.

The young witch bit the inside of her cheek gently as she thought about the vampire's answer and found herself appreciating his honesty as she slowly nodded her head in understanding. She was only too familiar with the need to protect family so she couldn't fault him for doing what she would do in his situation and in fact it only furthered her admiration for the Original.

"Fine. Thank you for your honesty." Imogen replied quietly as she offered him a small smile on her lips and he nodded once with a smile of his own as he gestured for her to continue down the staircase. She gave him one last doubtful look as she turned around before walking down the staircase with a light-hearted spring in her step now that her concerns had been remedied and Elijah had to fight a grin at her quick change in attitude as he trailed after her.

"My sister, Rebekah mentioned that the two of you are friends." Elijah mentioned nonchalantly as he placed his hands in his pants pockets and Imogen flashed him a smile over her shoulder before turning back around.

"That's right. Rebekah, Cami and I have gone shopping a few times. She's a surprisingly good friend to have."

"Rebekah has always had a hard time making female friends. I believe because of the heartbreak she has endured in the past, Rebekah has built up an emotional wall that causes her to come across as cruel to hide her emotionally fragile nature."

"She's just a lonely girl who wants someone who to care about her. I can understand her." Imogen stated softly mostly to herself as she exited the stairwell and cleared her throat to dislodge the memories of the past that caused her to empathise with the Original sister in the first place.

"I'm afraid understanding is something my sister has had go without for centuries. Appallingly enough, it is my own fault that she has had to endure such treatment. I've been so focused on attempting to contain my brothers, that I have overlooked my younger sister and her happiness." Elijah admitted regretfully as he walked over to sit down on the pew closest to the alter in the church and Imogen slowly sat down next to him with her ankles crossed comfortably as she tilted her head to the side in consideration.

"If the stories are true, you and your family have been vampires for more than thousand years, correct?" she asked him with a quirked eyebrow as she leaned her elbow on the back of the wooden pew and turned her body to face him as he looked back at her while nodding to show that she was correct. "A thousand years is a very long time, Elijah. I don't know what you've gone through or what your siblings have gone through but I do know that if you don't want to keep going like you have been, you have to make a change."

"If only it were that simple. I'm afraid that our current familial situation makes it nearly impossible to make life altering amends."

"You mean the werewolf girl that your hybrid brother knocked up?" Imogen asked him with a slightly amused smirk on her lips as she leaned her chin on the hand that was propped up on the back of the pew and his eyebrows creased in confusion as he looked at her because he thought that she was out of the witches gossip loop. "Something as nature disrupting as a vampire conceiving a child with a werewolf kind of spreads like wildfire."

"Yes, Rebekah keeps referring to the child as 'the Mikaelson miracle baby'. I don't think it's as complimentary as it sounds." He remarked drily as he subtly rolled his dark brown eyes with a smirk on his lips and his smile only grew when he heard the witch next to him laugh freely at his comment.

"And how is Klaus taking it? It has to be shocking to find out you're having a child after thousand years thinking it was impossible."

"My brother seems to be ignoring the fact that he has fathered a child." Elijah told her honestly with a small frown on his handsome face and he opened his mouth to tell her more but suddenly stopped himself when he realised that it was about to reveal his family secrets to a stranger. "But I'm sure that he'll come around in the end."

"And you? How do you feel about becoming an uncle?" Imogen asked him tentatively as she was well aware that he had stopped himself before so that he wouldn't divulge any information she might use against him or his family and she wanted him to know that she wouldn't pursue the conversation if he didn't want to. For some reason that she didn't understanding in the slightest, Imogen wanted Elijah to feel as though he could confide in her and she wanted to know if she could trust him with the secrets of her past.

The Original turned his head to face the young witch in surprise when he heard the earnest curiosity in her voice and paused for a moment when he realised that he hadn't really considered the fact that he was going to be an uncle because he had been too focused on the baby being his brother's redemption.

"I am…" he started to answer unsurely before he was interrupted by the sound of his cell phone ringing in his suit jacket pocket and he gave Imogen a look of apology as he slipped his hand into his pocket for it. She waved a dismissive hand in the air to show she didn't mind as she looked away to give him some sort of privacy and he frowned in concern when he saw that it was Rebekah calling him. "Hello?"

"_Elijah? Something is happening to Hayley!" _Rebekah cried in a panic through the phone line as he creased his eyebrows anxiously and glanced over at Imogen to see her watching him with concern in her bluish eyes.

"What's happening exactly?" he asked her as he stood up from the wooden pew and began to pace in front of where he had been sitting.

"_I don't know exactly. Hayley felt a pain in her neck like she was being stabbed. We think it has something to do with her connection to Sophie."_

"I'll go investigate. Try and keep Hayley calm. Call me if anything changes." Elijah commanded sternly to his sister as he stopped in front of Imogen before hanging up the phone and slipping it back into his suit pocket as he turned to the brunette. "I'm afraid something has come up. I'll be back to visit Davina soon with another spell."

"Wait." The young witch said to him firmly when he started to walk away and he turned his head around with a quirked eyebrow to see her standing up gracefully from the wooden pew. Imogen held her head high as she walked over to stand in front of him and he frowned at her in confusion as she placed a hand on her hip. "Let me help. I'm the only witch in the Quarter that can practice magic. Because of my blood link to Davina she can tell when I'm the one using magic and won't tell Marcel. If something magical is happening to the baby or its mother, you're going to want me there just in case."

"Why would you want to help us?"

"Magical curiosity." Imogen replied with a delicate shrug of her shoulders as she smiled slightly at the reversed roles they were playing and Elijah nodded once in acceptance as he started walking down the aisle with her following him.

"Do you know where the old governor's mansion is located just outside of town?" he asked her as he glanced over his shoulder at her and she nodded in answer as she tried to keep up with his long strides.

* * *

Rebekah couldn't remember a recent time when she had felt this panicked over someone else's wellbeing as she sat on the edge of the bed and gingerly blotted some of the sweat away from Hayley's forehead. The last ten minute's since her phone call to Elijah had progressed rapidly when Hayley had broken out in a sweat and Rebekah made her go lay down in bed as she pressed a cold cloth to her burning skin.

"Stop fussing, will you? Elijah will be here any minute." The Original female commanded in stern tone that lacked her usual abrasiveness as she gave the werewolf a pointed look and Hayley grimaced in pain as she squirmed on top of the quilt.

"I feel like I've been microwaved." Hayley complained in a murmur as she sighed heavily with exhaustion and closed her eyes against the harsh light for a moment.

"Hey! Just because you're carrying a baby, doesn't mean you get to act like one! I'm sure my little niece is healing you up as we speak." Rebekah assured her with a weak smile as she removed the cold compress from her head and replaced it with another as Hayley glared half-heartedly at the insult.

"Rebekah!" a female voice called out from the parlour as Rebekah froze at the sound of the front door opening and the vampire slouched in relief at the familiar voice as Hayley grew suspicious at the stranger's intrusion.

"Upstairs!" Rebekah called back loudly so that they would be able to hear her from downstairs and Hayley grimaced at the sudden noise as she turned her head away from the overhead light to look at the door to the bedroom so that she'd be able to see the stranger. "It seems Elijah has called in reinforcements."

Imogen hurried up the stairs to the second floor as fast as she could in the direction that Rebekah had called out from and found the door to a bed on the left open with the light shining into the hallway. Inside the room she found a distressed looking Rebekah sitting on the edge of a double bed and a young woman with tan skin, brunette hair and green hazel eyes that was sweating profusely as she lay in the middle of the bed with a folded cloth on her forehead.

Hayley heard the sound of footsteps rushing towards the bedroom with her werewolf hearing and within seconds a gorgeous young woman with shoulder length wavy brunette hair, bluish coloured eyes and rosy cheeks appeared in the doorway slightly out of breath.

"Hey." Imogen greeted them breathlessly as she strolled into the room almost hesitantly and Rebekah narrowed her cerulean blue eyes at her friend as she approached the bed.

"What are you doing here?" Rebekah asked her suspiciously as she gracefully stood up from the edge of the bed and took up a protective stance in front of the werewolf that she had been tasked with protecting.

"I was with Elijah when you called him. I offered to help."

"And that's what makes me question your motives."

"You can relax, Rebekah. I actually like your family. Hayley and her little 'miracle Mikaelson' won't come to any harm from me." the young witch assured the blonde Original with a small smirk on her lips as she held up her hands in mock surrender and Rebekah eyed her thoughtfully for a moment before nodding in acceptance.

"Someone want to explain me what the hell is going on?" Hayley asked impatiently from the bed as she tried to ignore the slight pain that was increasing around her stomach and tensed warily when the new brunette stepped around Rebekah to sit on the edge of the bed with a smirk.

"You must be Hayley. I'm Imogen." She introduced herself politely as she reached a hand out to feel the werewolf's forehead gently and frowned when her magic immediately swelled in her veins like it couldn't wait to be released. "Something's wrong."

"Well, that's bloody obvious." Rebekah remarked drily with a roll of her eyes as she crept closer to the bed and knelt down next to the edge as she placed another cold washcloth on Hayley's forehead.

"My magic just went haywire." Imogen elaborated carefully as her forehead creased in concentration and she tried to figure out what could be making her energy react so strongly to Hayley's condition until she gaped in realisation. "Oh, crap. I know what happened."

"What?" Hayley asked her weakly as she stared at the young witch distrustfully because she didn't have the best track record with witches of the French Quarter and Rebekah shifted slightly to look at her friend nervously as she gripped Hayley's hand in hers in a sign of comfort.

"I've heard stories about these cursed objects that are in the hands of the coven. The elders also kept them locked away but told us legends about them. Apparently, the cursed objects were created a long time ago. The remaining coven members use them so they don't get busted by Marcel for doing magic. The one Hayley is showing symptoms of is called the Needle of Sorrows. It was cursed in 1860 when... That doesn't matter but it has only one purpose: to kill a child in utero by raising her blood temperature."

"It causes a miscarriage." Rebekah surmised grimly as she watched Imogen nodded while gently place her hands on Hayley's subtle baby bump and close her eyes as she muttered under her breath in Latin.

"I'm trying to cool your core body temperature down." Imogen informed Hayley in a comforting tone as she felt the magic energy in her flow straight to her hands and she felt her blood run cold as she concentrated on the spell she had to use.

Rebekah sighed slightly in defeat as she turned her attention to the pregnant werewolf next to her and ran her thumb soothingly over Hayley's knuckles as she tried to remain positive that Elijah would save the day. She snapped her head around when she heard the sound of footsteps hurrying towards the bedroom and her blue eyes narrowed threateningly when she saw that her older brother wasn't alone.

"What the hell is she doing here?" the Original sister asked in a hiss as she stood up from her kneeling position to glare at the woman standing next to her brother and Imogen frowned in confusion as she kept her focus on the spell she was performing.

"I'm trying to help." Sophie assured Rebekah with a sigh as she rolled her eyes at the blonde and then froze in surprise when her gaze landed on the bed where Imogen was sitting on the edge with her hands resting on Hayley's stomach.

"Help? You're the reason we're in this bloody mess! Why aren't we unlinked with this witch already, Elijah?"

"It's not working." Imogen murmured in defeat as she slowly opened her eyes to look apologetically at the werewolf and Hayley offered her a weak smile in response when she saw the honest sorrow in her bluish eyes.

"Rebekah, let her do what she can." Elijah ordered his little sister softly as he looked at her imploringly and Rebekah huffed slightly as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I may know a way to slow the fever down. But, I'm gonna need some special herbs." Sophie told them as she broke her gaze from the brunette sitting on the bed and looked at Rebekah with a pointed expression as she quirked an eyebrow. "I'll text you a list."

Rebekah scoffed slightly as she rolled her eyes at the witch's total lack of respect for someone who could snap her like a twig and looked over at Elijah who nodded in encouragement.

"Fine. Happy to play the fetch girl." Rebekah relented with a patronising smile on her lips as she uncrossed her arms from her chest and case an anxious glance over her shoulder at the two brunettes' on the bed. She sighed in defeat as she turned back around to face her brother with a tight sarcastic smile and shoved the towel she was holding into Elijah's chest before stomping out of the room.

"Hayley's still dying over here, if anyone cares." Imogen called over her shoulder sarcastically with a roll of her eyes at the bickering as she dabbed the werewolf's head with a cloth and Hayley chuckled feebly at the young witch sitting next to her.

Elijah snapped his head over to the double bed where the two women that had begun to intrigue him sat together and abruptly used his vampire speed to blur over to the edge of the bed with a concerned frown.

Sophie walked briskly over to the edge of the bed with an impassive expression to hide the mixture of emotions that were swirling inside of her and tried to ignore the raging urge to hug her best friend after not seeing her for months since the Harvest. "We need to get her outside in the cool air."

"I've tried a simple frigus temperatus spell but because it's a hex from a cursed object, it's not working." Imogen informed the other witch without looking at her as she stood up from the edge of the bed and Elijah moved closer to gently lift Hayley into his arms as she stepped back out of the way.

"What? No, 'Hello, Sophie. My best friend in the entire world.'?" Sophie asked in a sardonic voice mixed with bitterness as she crossed her arms over her chest as though it would protect her from whatever Imogen was about to throw at her.

Imogen spun around to glare at the dark eyed witch with fierce flashing eyes as she tried not to let her growing magical energy get out of control and Sophie lifted her chin in defiance under her heated stare.

Elijah ignored the growing tension between the two young witches as she carefully carried Hayley out of the room and made a mental note to speak to Imogen about the comment later at a more appropriate time in the future.

"A best friend doesn't try and murder the other's sister!"

"Sacrifice! It's a sacrifice, not murder."

"It's not going to happen!" Imogen snapped in a dangerously low voice as she stepped forward threateningly and Sophie scowled at the other brunette as she ran a frustrated hand through her long hair.

There was a time when Sophie Deveraux and Imogen Clare were inseparable and no matter what anyone tried to do to keep them apart, they always fought tooth and nail until they found their way back to each other. Since pre-kindergarten the two young girls had formed a friendship that had lasted through elementary school, high school and college until the night of the Harvest when the bond of family loyalty had finally pulled the two apart.

"We need to get downstairs. I came to help and I pan to do just that." Imogen said coldly as she stared at Sophie with dull bluish eyes so that the other brunette wouldn't see the hurt behind the impassive mask.

"Fine." Sophie murmured quietly as she turned to walk out the room but spun back around with her dark brown eyes shining with all of the longing, remorse and pain that she wouldn't allow herself to speak out loud. "I miss you. I miss us."

Imogen swallowed down the lump in her throat as she blinked away the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes and let stern expression crumple so that Sophie could read the despair and regret in her eyes. "I miss you too. You have to understand why I'm doing this."

"I do." The other witch assured her quickly as she nodded shakily in acknowledgement and let a shuddering breath as she fiddled restlessly with her fingers. "You have to understand why I'm doing this as well. Jane-Anne died for this. If there's a chance Monique can come back, I have to take it."

"I'd be the same if it was Davina." Imogen acknowledged with certainty ringing in her soft voice as she nodded her head and allowed a small smile blossom on her lips as she took a step closer almost instinctively. "We should get downstairs. Rebekah will be back with the herbs by now."

"Let's go then." Sophie uttered quietly as she started to leave the room once more and Imogen closed her eyes gently for a moment as she tried to collect her scattered emotions before following after her ex-best friend.

Outside in the backyard of the mansion, Hayley was sitting by the edge of the large pool as the moonlight cast a gloomy backdrop for the night's events and Rebekah was placing the correct herbs that she had gotten on the small table on the patio in preparation for Sophie's spell. Elijah was standing protective behind the sick werewolf with his arms folded over his chest as they waited for the two young witches to join them and everyone turned to face the door as it suddenly opened from the inside to reveal Sophie and Imogen emerging.

"She's burning up! We need to do this now." Elijah informed them sternly as he slipped out of his suit jacket and Sophie rushed towards the table with the herbs on it as she felt her own temperature spike but she kept her focus on the werewolf.

"Get her in the water! " Sophie ordered the male Original as she bit into her lower lip anxiously and started pouring the herbs into a bowl in the right order as Imogen strolled over to her side in case she needed help. Elijah jumped into the pool with a splash before he gently placed his arms under Hayley to help her into the water and Sophie mixed the herbs together quickly before following them into the waist high water.

"I don't see how a midnight swim is supposed to help." Rebekah commented drily as she crossed her arms over her chest in what might have been construed as impassiveness but Imogen immediately recognised it as a barrier between the blonde and reality.

Her temperature is sky-high. The water, with the help of the herbs, should cool them down." Imogen explained to them from the edge of the pool as she walked around to stand next to the female Original and Sophie quickly drank half of the greenish herb mixture before walking over to hand the cup to Hayley who immediately gulped down the rest of it.

"God, that's disgusting." Hayley complained in a weak voice as she grimaced at the taste of the murky liquid and Imogen smirked at the comment in admiration that she still had her wit about her when she was in danger.

"You're going to have to get her heart rate down. Hold her. It's a natural human remedy to slow the heart rate and reduce blood pressure." Sophie told Elijah firmly as she pursed her lips together to stop from groaning at the heat building underneath her skin and Elijah quickly slipped his arms under Hayley's legs before picking her up bridal-style.

"Davina will break the link, we just need time." Elijah murmured just loud enough for Imogen to hear him as he held the werewolf close to his chest and the young witch frown in confusion before realisation set in.

"The sanguinum knot." Imogen uttered to herself in understanding as she glanced at the ground before turning her accusing glare on to the other brunette witch and scowling at her as she shook her head in disapproval. "You linked yourself to a pregnant werewolf? To what end?"

"We needed leverage over Klaus." The other witch told her defiantly as she returned the glare with equal measure and Imogen scoffed at the remark as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I can't breathe!" Hayley cried out loud with a groan as she clung to Elijah's shoulder and gasped for breath as she hyperventilated under the stress of impending miscarriage.

"Okay, long deep breaths, Hayley! Look at me. Long deep breaths, just focus on the sound of my voice." Elijah instructed her soothingly as he rubbed a hand gently down her back and demonstrated her to breathe calmly as she followed his lead.

"I just felt it lift." Sophie murmured as she looked up at the sky in wonder with wide dark brown eyes and everyone sighed in relief as Hayley started to even out her breathing now that she wasn't in pain because of the weapon used on Sophie. The young witch removed one of the earrings from her earlobe before stabbing her palm with the sharp metal end and she winced in pain as the skin broke but Hayley's skin stayed undamaged.

"Thank god." Rebekah breathed out in relief as she slouched her shoulders and Imogen placed a reassuring hand on her friend's arm as she ignored the moment being shared by the couple still standing in the middle of the pool.

"Elijah...as soon as your brother finds out that the link is broken, he'll kill Agnes. I know you don't owe me anything, but please, don't let him kill her." Sophie said in a rush as panic overtook her because if Agnes died no one would be able to perform the Harvest ritual and Imogen snapped her gaze around to the other witch as Elijah used his vampire speed to run out of the pool towards his jacket. "Elijah! She's our only access to the power we _need_ to survive. Promise me that you'll stop him!"

Imogen released Rebekah's arm from her hand with wide eyes filled with alarm and walked quickly over to where Elijah was dialling someone on his cell phone as hope started to swell in the stomach that everything might be over sooner rather than later. The young witch stood a few feet away from the Original as he held the phone up to his ear and his dark brown eyes moved to capture her bluish ones as she bit her lower lip nervously.

"It's me, where are you? Don't hurt her. I'll be there shortly." Elijah said into the phone as he read the hope shining in Imogen's gaze before hanging up the cell phone and slipping it into his pants pocket before turning to face Sophie with a blank expression on his handsome face. "I'll make you one last promise. I won't let my brother kill Agnes."

Sophie nodded her head stiffly in agreement as she pressed her lips together in a tight line and Elijah narrowed his eyes at her before walked into the house through the back door without another word. Hayley climbed out of the pool slowly as she wobbled slightly on her feet and threw a heated glare in the Deveraux witch before silently walking into the house to lie down.

"Come on, Imogen. I'll get us a drink." Rebekah told the brunette as she strolled over to place a hand on the witch's arm and Imogen nodded shakily as she stared blankly at the girl she used to be friends with before following after the blonde Original.


End file.
